“What was that? Did you hear something?”

“Get in the car. You are being blindfolded and taken somewhere you don’t know, your job is to find your way back to McDaniel.”

That is a true story of what happened to English teacher, Matthew Blair. He was kidnapped by fraternity brothers and dropped off five miles away and told to find his way back to McDaniel.

If that doesn’t convince you to apply to McDaniel maybe the following will.

McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland, is a private college of liberal arts and science. There are 1,700 students that attend, with 45% male and 55% female.

“There were small classes that enabled you to get to know professors. At other schools, you don’t always get to know your professors but that was one of the great things about McDaniel,” said Vice Principal for Academics Gary Scholl who graduated from McDaniel in 1971. The average class size is 17 students with a student to faculty ratio of 12-1.

What it Offers:

McDaniel offers 24 sports teams combined for both men and women that compete in the Centennial Conference in Division III of the NCAA.  They also offer over 100 groups and clubs such as religious, ethnic, and cultural groups, Greek societies, honor societies, media groups, and academic clubs.

“That’s the good thing about McDaniel; you can do lots of things there. You don’t have to dedicate yourself to one thing,” said Blair.

Scholl particularly enjoyed the sports offered at McDaniel. “Wrestling was great. It was the same people all four years. It was a big part of my college life,” said Scholl.

McDaniel is the only college where you can travel to  Budapest, Hungary and Brussels, Belgium.  First year second semester students, sophomores, juniors, and first semester seniors can take advantage of the program.

There are a wide variety of programs to study. They include biology, biological sciences, business administration and management, art history and appreciation, communications, dramatic arts, English, fine arts, French, German, music, Spanish, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, physics, physical education, environmental science, economics, history, philosophy, political science, psychology, religion, social work, and sociology.

Fun Facts:

McDaniel has the supernatural that live on their campus. Ghosts are supposedly in Alumni Hall (the drama department) and certain dorms.  “The rumor was the ghost was a girl who killed herself in the walk-in closet,” said Blair.

McDaniel allows students to climb to the top of Eaton Hall, their tallest building on campus, allowing for a clear view of Sugarloaf Mountain.

Applying:

McDaniel offers early action, regular decision, and online applications. To apply, it is required that you complete a common application with an essay, send transcripts, have two letters of recommendations, SAT or ACT scores, and pay a fee of $50.

Contacts:

Phone: 800-638-5005

Email: [email protected]

Address: 2 College Hill Westminister, MD 21157

McDaniel College was the result of a random drawing of potential colleges from the tri-state area.

Gabby Joseph can be reached for comment at [email protected].