Welcome, Class of 2029. It’s Time to Start Your UMD Bucket List.

You’ve unloaded your favorite pillow and posters from the yellow cart, successfully navigated a dozen food stations and plate return carousel at Yahentamitsi dining hall, and made the surprisingly tiring uphill trek by the Adele H. Stamp Student Union. 

Next, freshmen can take a deeper dive into the full University of Maryland experience by crossing off items on the official UMD Bucket List. It’s part of the “M Book,” a guide to Terp life with fun traditions, facts and tips, distributed each fall to first-year students by the UMD Alumni Association. 

The list features 20 ways for Terps to get the most out of their UMD experience. All they have to do is snap a selfie or a video of themselves doing each one, and track their progress through Canvas, and they can collect a pin for every five completed and get a special medallion to wear at commencement. 

Start your journey now (the sooner the better, but it’s not too late, even if you’re a senior!):  

Get your “M Book”
Don’t worry if you didn’t pick up a copy of the “M Book” during “Welcome to the B1G Show” last week, where you might also have gotten a head start on some bucket list items, like learning UMD songs, cheers and traditions. You can also visit the Alumni Association table at the First Look Fair (see below!) or stop by the Samuel Riggs IV Alumni Center during business hours for a copy.  

Find a club to join at the First Look Fair
Looking to play on a soccer team, crochet colorful creatures with new friends, or be part of a group building and launching rockets? Check out the First Look Fair from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sept. 12. Held annually on McKeldin Mall and featuring more than 650 student clubs and campus departments, it gives students an easy way to explore extracurriculars on campus, from service organizations to cultural groups and academic and athletic clubs. 

Pick up your free copy of the First Year Book
It’s a UMD tradition to offer a shared reading experience to first-year students; the First Year Book is incorporated into a handful of classes across campus and the subject of events. This year’s tome might look familiar: It’s the Constitution of the United States. Visit the Stamp Student Union Info Desk for a free copy, then look out for a full slate of events on Constitution Day, Sept. 17. 

Attend the SEE Homecoming Comedy Show
Before you cheer on the Terps football team during Homecoming on Nov. 1, check out the popular comedy show, which will be on Oct. 26. This year’s headliner is yet to be announced, but previous acts have included John Mulaney (twice!), Eric Andre and Hasan Minhaj. 

Hit every neighborhood at Maryland Day
It might seem far away now, but mark your calendar for the last Saturday in April, when 80,000 people will descend upon campus for UMD’s annual open house. Featuring autograph signings from student-athletes, free Maryland Dairy ice cream (if you know where to look), behind-the-scenes access to The Clarice’s props and the chance to cuddle a tarantula, the 400+ free events offer something for everyone. 

Learn the words to the Victory Song
If you can spell “Maryland,” you’ve already got the most important part of the song down. At football and basketball games, raise your fists and sing along to the Mighty Sound of Maryland marching band until you learn all the words: 

Maryland we’re all behind you,
Raise high the black and gold.
For there is nothing half so glorious,
As to see our team victorious.
We’ve got the steam, Terps,
We’ve got the team, Terps,
So keep on fighting, don’t give in!
M-A-R-Y-L-A-N-D (yell)
Maryland will win!

Bowl at TerpZone
Get the ball rolling on a new friendship by heading to the eight lanes at TerpZone, located in the basement of the Stamp Student Union. If knocking down pins isn’t enough of a thrill, try Friday and Saturday night cosmic bowling, featuring spinning disco balls and black lights. 

Take a picture at the M 
Bursting with red or yellow flowers, the iconic “M” along Campus Drive is the perfect spot to grab some first-day shots or pose with your cap and gown at graduation.   

Dip your toes in the ODK Fountain
Kick off your shoes on a hot day and dip your toes into the famous fountain in the center of McKeldin Mall. Honoring inductees of Omicron Delta Kappa, the national leadership honor society, the tiered water feature is filled with floating foam turtles every Maryland Day for kids to fish out and take home. 

Eat Maryland Dairy ice cream 
Grab a scoop of custom-made flavors like Fear the Turtle, Terpresso or classic vanilla—in a sundae, milkshake or root beer float—from the Maryland Dairy, tucked in the back of the first floor of the Stamp. If you have a dining plan, you can find rotating flavors at 251 North dining hall, or if you spot a red rolling cart at the next welcome event you attend, you might be lucky enough to get a free serving there. 

Get a turtle pin from President Pines
These tiny Terps are a bright pop of gold on any bag or blazer, so be sure to get one from President Darryll J. Pines as he hands them out to the student section at football games, during events at his official residence, University House, or just about any time you spot him walking across campus.  

Sit on The Wall and wave the Maryland flag at a basketball game
Show your support for the Terps men’s and women’s basketball teams—which both made the Sweet Sixteen last school year—by not only wearing red, black and gold but helping to unfurl an enormous state flag during the game.   

Make a donation on Giving Day
Just $5 could make a difference for a fellow student experiencing food insecurity, or $10 could help fund your favorite student group. The annual 24-hour giving marathon, next held on March 4, 2026, is UMD’s biggest fundraising day of the year. Look out for matching donation challenges to make the most of your gift and unlock extra funds for your cause by rallying your friends to chip in too. 

Sit at the Jim Henson statue
If you’re ever feeling the need for a “Rainbow Connection,” sit next to one of UMD’s most famous alums, Jim Henson ’60, and his iconic puppet Kermit the Frog, right outside the Stamp. Take Henson’s advice to his children toward the end of his life: “Please watch out for each other, and love and forgive everybody. It’s a good life. Enjoy it.” In a 2024 visit to UMD, Kermit said, “I try to remind myself of that every day.” 

Volunteer during Do Good Month
It’s always a great time to give back to the community, but April is when Terps come together to serve locally and nationally. Clean up a local park, pack nonperishable meals, give blood and more. And check out how Terps are changing the world through the Do Good Challenge, open to all UMD students with social impact projects and offering $40,000 in prize money.   

Check out a performance at The Clarice or Hoff Theater
Laugh out loud as former “Saturday Night Live” star Leslie Jones comes in January to tell celebrity stories, get swept up in a musical rom-com or enjoy the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra in concert, all at the state’s largest performance facility, right here on campus. And enjoy some buttery popcorn while you watch free recently-released movies or student performances at the Stamp’s Hoff Theater. 

Go to a football tailgate
Befriend a fellow student whose parents pull out all the stops or join a campus club or organization that brings together alums and students for corn hole and hot dogs on game days. Don’t miss the chance to wish the players good luck at Terp Alley as the student-athletes walk along Fieldhouse Drive and head into Jones-Hill House, buoyed by the Mighty Sound of Maryland and the dance and cheer squads.

Rub Testudo's nose for good luck
It’s never too early to pay your respects. With seven bronze Testudos across campus, start making it a habit to rub the Maryland mascot’s shiny nose everywhere you go, from in front of McKeldin Library to outside Van Munching Hall. 

Catch some rays on La Plata Beach
Test your reflexes with spikeball, smash a winner on the sand volleyball court or just relax while the weather is warm on La Plata Beach, located across from Eppley Recreation Center. A popular spot for exercising and sunbathing alike, it’s even been transformed into an ice rink during the winter.