University Park: located about 1.5 miles south of the department. It is bordered on the east by Route 1, on the south by Route 410, on the west by Adelphi Road and on the north by Wells Parkway. University Park is an older residential neighborhood; the houses are quaint (generally brick) and well landscaped. Spring is a lovely time; you can walk down the street and see flowering plants in every yard. The neighborhood is quiet and safe. However, there are no apartments or townhouses, and it can be hard to find a house to rent. (Usually the older houses are the ones available.) Expect the rent to be on the high end of the scale.
College Park and Berwyn Heights: College Park is difficult to define in terms of land extension. The northern end is near the Beltway and has a few (15 or so) apartment buildings. The southern end has even fewer apt buildings, but many houses to rent. Central CP is the University area, filled to the brim with undergrads and undergrad housing. Most of the restaurants and bars in the area cater to the undergraduate population. North of the University, towards the Observatory, is a part of College Park known as College Park Woods. There are many nice houses for rent in this area (no apartments). An advantage to living here is that you can actually walk to school. Berwyn Heights is a more residential area with older houses for rent (no apartments). These areas are less upscale then University Park, so rents are lower but the houses are generally not as nice. (There are good and bad neighborhoods in College Park; ask the grad students for advice if you're considering living there.) Seven Springs Village is an apartment complex in northern College Park which is popular with graduate students in the department; it is a high rise on the north end of College Park and features free shuttle service to the University.
Riverdale and Hyattsville: These neighborhoods are south of University Park and College Park. Both areas deteriorate (both in terms of living conditions and safety) quickly as you go south towards DC. However, parts of these suburbs are old, historic and nice. The quality of the neighborhood changes dramatically from block to block. In general, the apartment complexes here are very poor, but nice houses for rent can be found. It is best to ask someone what it is like before moving into one of these suburbs.
Adelphi and Lanham Hills: These neighborhoods are west of College Park. There are both apartment complexes and houses for rent here. These areas are also good and bad depending on the neighborhood; again, it is best to ask someone before signing a lease.
Greenbelt: Greenbelt was developed as a planned community in the 30s, and it's a really desirable place to live. It has confusing roads, but it's generally quiet and safe, and residents have a strong sense of community. Greenbelt is very large and the housing changes in character from one end to the other. Near Goddard (at the eastern end of Greenbelt), are many townhomes and apartment complexes. There are two little shopping plazas (a K-mart!) and some nice restaurants here. In central Greenbelt, you can find both houses for rent (many with views of the lake) and apartment complexes in central Greenbelt; two favorites among the grad students are Lakeside North and University Square Apts. (Both offer free shuttle service to the University.) Central Greenbelt features a nice Co-Op in the town plaza as well as a community center (pool, town hall, etc) and a theater. The west end of Greenbelt has some apartment buildings and is close to a shopping plaza (Beltway Plaza) but it's also a higher crime area. Most places in Greenbelt are about a 10-15 minute drive from the University.
Takoma Park: Takoma Park is southwest of the University. Like University Park, this is a safe, quiet neighborhood with houses for rent (no apartment complexes). The houses are beautiful Victorian style homes with tree-lined streets. Prime spots (houses near the metro) tend to take some patience and luck to find. There's almost always something available on the north side of town, but exercise a bit of caution when thinking of the towers on Maple Ave.; some of them are buggy. Takoma Park is a diverse community with a liberal, tolerant flavor. It has a nice little shopping district filled with independently owned shops, a farmer's market on Sundays, and its own metro stop on the red line. However, it is a 15-25 min commute by car to school due to traffic. If you want to ride the University shuttle, the stop is at University & Piney Branch: a hefty hike from most parts of Takoma Park.
Beltsville/Laurel/Columbia: These areas are north of the University and outside of the Beltway. They are suburban areas with some houses for rent and lots of townhouses and apartment complexes. One of the advantages to living in these areas is the convenient shopping. Laurel has a nice little mall as well as some independent shops and a weekend Farmer's Market in the historic ``downtown'' area. There are also several nice restaurants featuring a wide variety of specialties: mexican, italian, pakistani/indian, barbeque, and seafood. Columbia features some really nice, big malls as well as some of the area's nicests parks. An advantage of living here is that it is a central location; you are 30-40 minutes away from DC, Baltimore, and Annapolis. The major disadvantage is that you are 30-40 minutes (depending on the area and the traffic) from the University.