Does University of Michigan live up to the hype?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Madison's a small city and state capital, in a uniquely beautiful lakeside setting; Ann Arbor is a very large and dynamic college town. Madison is a little colder in the winter; Ann Arbor gets a little more rain and snow in the winter, while Madison gets a little more rain in the summer. Ann Arbor is closer to (much larger) metro Detroit than Madison is to Milwaukee. Ann Arbor is also reasonably close (25 miles) to DTW which is one of the 20 biggest hub airports in the US; air connections to Madison are tougher - Madison/Dane is a small airport, and MKE isn't very big either and is 85 miles away.

Presumably saying this will unleash more insults from our unhinged Ann Arbor basher, but the fact is the two towns aren't so dramatically different that it should play a major factor (relative to issues like specific academic programs, projected cost, etc) in choosing one university or the other. Or to look at it another way: the gap between the two cities probably isn't as great as the gap between the perceived reputations of the two universities, notwithstanding Wisconsin's excellence.

It's funny: I don't disagree with any of your descriptions, but I think the difference between Madison and Ann Arbor is meaningful (which obviously can cut either way, depending on your personal preferences) whereas any gap between the University of Michigan and the University of Wisconsin is much more perception than reality.

The reality is that Wisconsin has a decidedly lower 4/6 year graduate rate and a considerably higher faculty/student ratio. Sometimes perception is reality. Wisconsin is a very good school, Michigan just beats it in most ways.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:and the first college town cited by AARP. Guess they didn't get the memo that no one would retire there.

https://www.aarp.org/retirement/planning-for-retirement/info-2016/ten-ideal-college-towns-for-retirement-photo.html#slide1

Those articles are usually written by some 25 year old clueless journalism major who has no idea what they are talking about. Unless you love snowmobiling, ice fishing, and binge watching Duck Dynasty, you will probably not like living in Michigan year round. OK place for students? Probably, but depends on the student. I lived there for over 10 years and it's just a miserable place, full of small town types. A lot of people go to college with friends from high school and most people never leave the state. As another poster noted, it is insular, insular to the extreme.

The writer of the article you were referencing was Anne Field:


https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-field-9000575/

https://annefieldonline.com/


I’m guessing Anne is closing in on 60. I’d say the only clueless one here is you. Spouting off nonsense as is it were fact and so easily
refuted. If you ever did live in Michigan for ten years, you obviously never became a part of any community. Then again with your attitude, I’m sure most people avoided you like the plague.

The difference between me and you is that I've lived in Michigan for 15 years and you read an article you dolt.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes it does. In from NY. Went to NYU. Visited a close friend at Michigan junior year and always said if I’d gone or two years earlier I would have wanted to transfer. Great academics, great culture, great college town, great sports. It’s the full package. But impossible to get into these days.

How is Michigan impossible to get into when they take 4000 oos kids a year? That’s huge!

What’s Michigan’s yield on oos?

Michigan is markedly easier to get into than penn for example.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes it does. In from NY. Went to NYU. Visited a close friend at Michigan junior year and always said if I’d gone or two years earlier I would have wanted to transfer. Great academics, great culture, great college town, great sports. It’s the full package. But impossible to get into these days.

How is Michigan impossible to get into when they take 4000 oos kids a year? That’s huge!

What’s Michigan’s yield on oos?

Michigan is markedly easier to get into than penn for example.

It’s not impossible of course, but definitely difficult. Of course smaller elite schools like Penn will always be a harder admit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:and the first college town cited by AARP. Guess they didn't get the memo that no one would retire there.

https://www.aarp.org/retirement/planning-for-retirement/info-2016/ten-ideal-college-towns-for-retirement-photo.html#slide1

Those articles are usually written by some 25 year old clueless journalism major who has no idea what they are talking about. Unless you love snowmobiling, ice fishing, and binge watching Duck Dynasty, you will probably not like living in Michigan year round. OK place for students? Probably, but depends on the student. I lived there for over 10 years and it's just a miserable place, full of small town types. A lot of people go to college with friends from high school and most people never leave the state. As another poster noted, it is insular, insular to the extreme.

The writer of the article you were referencing was Anne Field:


https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-field-9000575/

https://annefieldonline.com/


I’m guessing Anne is closing in on 60. I’d say the only clueless one here is you. Spouting off nonsense as is it were fact and so easily
refuted. If you ever did live in Michigan for ten years, you obviously never became a part of any community. Then again with your attitude, I’m sure most people avoided you like the plague.

The difference between me and you is that I've lived in Michigan for 15 years and you read an article you dolt.

Wow, you told me! Next posting you’ll mention you lived there for 20 years. It doesn’t change the fact that you’re an insufferable snobbish boor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:and the first college town cited by AARP. Guess they didn't get the memo that no one would retire there.

https://www.aarp.org/retirement/planning-for-retirement/info-2016/ten-ideal-college-towns-for-retirement-photo.html#slide1

Those articles are usually written by some 25 year old clueless journalism major who has no idea what they are talking about. Unless you love snowmobiling, ice fishing, and binge watching Duck Dynasty, you will probably not like living in Michigan year round. OK place for students? Probably, but depends on the student. I lived there for over 10 years and it's just a miserable place, full of small town types. A lot of people go to college with friends from high school and most people never leave the state. As another poster noted, it is insular, insular to the extreme.

The writer of the article you were referencing was Anne Field:


https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-field-9000575/

https://annefieldonline.com/


I’m guessing Anne is closing in on 60. I’d say the only clueless one here is you. Spouting off nonsense as is it were fact and so easily
refuted. If you ever did live in Michigan for ten years, you obviously never became a part of any community. Then again with your attitude, I’m sure most people avoided you like the plague.

The difference between me and you is that I've lived in Michigan for 15 years and you read an article you dolt.

So, PP, you come on here and vent about Michigan, but you've lived there for 15 years and do not have the wherewithal to leave? I lived there for nearly two decades and had to relocate for work. Lived in a great blue county about 40 minutes from Lake Michigan. FWIW, there are red counties in Michigan just like there are in New York, including the Hamptons, as well as similar scenice spots around the country.

Maybe you have SAD?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:and the first college town cited by AARP. Guess they didn't get the memo that no one would retire there.

https://www.aarp.org/retirement/planning-for-retirement/info-2016/ten-ideal-college-towns-for-retirement-photo.html#slide1

Those articles are usually written by some 25 year old clueless journalism major who has no idea what they are talking about. Unless you love snowmobiling, ice fishing, and binge watching Duck Dynasty, you will probably not like living in Michigan year round. OK place for students? Probably, but depends on the student. I lived there for over 10 years and it's just a miserable place, full of small town types. A lot of people go to college with friends from high school and most people never leave the state. As another poster noted, it is insular, insular to the extreme.

The writer of the article you were referencing was Anne Field:


https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-field-9000575/

https://annefieldonline.com/


I’m guessing Anne is closing in on 60. I’d say the only clueless one here is you. Spouting off nonsense as is it were fact and so easily
refuted. If you ever did live in Michigan for ten years, you obviously never became a part of any community. Then again with your attitude, I’m sure most people avoided you like the plague.

The difference between me and you is that I've lived in Michigan for 15 years and you read an article you dolt.

NP. I'm not really sure what an article about great places to retire has to do with whether a place is a good college town.

Ann Arbor is a good college town because it has a lot that appeals to college students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:and the first college town cited by AARP. Guess they didn't get the memo that no one would retire there.

https://www.aarp.org/retirement/planning-for-retirement/info-2016/ten-ideal-college-towns-for-retirement-photo.html#slide1

Those articles are usually written by some 25 year old clueless journalism major who has no idea what they are talking about. Unless you love snowmobiling, ice fishing, and binge watching Duck Dynasty, you will probably not like living in Michigan year round. OK place for students? Probably, but depends on the student. I lived there for over 10 years and it's just a miserable place, full of small town types. A lot of people go to college with friends from high school and most people never leave the state. As another poster noted, it is insular, insular to the extreme.

The writer of the article you were referencing was Anne Field:


https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-field-9000575/

https://annefieldonline.com/


I’m guessing Anne is closing in on 60. I’d say the only clueless one here is you. Spouting off nonsense as is it were fact and so easily
refuted. If you ever did live in Michigan for ten years, you obviously never became a part of any community. Then again with your attitude, I’m sure most people avoided you like the plague.

The difference between me and you is that I've lived in Michigan for 15 years and you read an article you dolt.

NP. I'm not really sure what an article about great places to retire has to do with whether a place is a good college town.

Ann Arbor is a good college town because it has a lot that appeals to college students.

Because a PP brought up how the town seems like it would be great to retire there and another poster responded with something like no one would want to retire there. Not worth scrolling through the pages to find it, you aren’t missing anything.

Back to University of Michigan: my DD is there and she would say for the most part it lives up to the hype. The only thing that surprised her early on was some classes were hard to get into. I think she figured a school that big would have space for everyone one way or another. She understands better now and even ended up changing direction because a class she took when she couldn’t get in the one she wanted. So it turned out just fine. Everything else has been in line with her expectations, or exceeded it. She has a great deal of respect for her professors, has liked her classes and thought most of them were appropriately challenging, has met a lot of nice kids, and has had loads of fun.

And agree about the “go blue” thing. Don’t care where in the world you are, someone will yell out “go blue” if you’re wearing a shirt or cap. It really is something to experience. The pride, connection, etc. It’s lovely without feeling cult-y. I’m so happy she is at Michigan.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:and the first college town cited by AARP. Guess they didn't get the memo that no one would retire there.

https://www.aarp.org/retirement/planning-for-retirement/info-2016/ten-ideal-college-towns-for-retirement-photo.html#slide1

Those articles are usually written by some 25 year old clueless journalism major who has no idea what they are talking about. Unless you love snowmobiling, ice fishing, and binge watching Duck Dynasty, you will probably not like living in Michigan year round. OK place for students? Probably, but depends on the student. I lived there for over 10 years and it's just a miserable place, full of small town types. A lot of people go to college with friends from high school and most people never leave the state. As another poster noted, it is insular, insular to the extreme.

The writer of the article you were referencing was Anne Field:


https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-field-9000575/

https://annefieldonline.com/


I’m guessing Anne is closing in on 60. I’d say the only clueless one here is you. Spouting off nonsense as is it were fact and so easily
refuted. If you ever did live in Michigan for ten years, you obviously never became a part of any community. Then again with your attitude, I’m sure most people avoided you like the plague.

The difference between me and you is that I've lived in Michigan for 15 years and you read an article you dolt.

So, PP, you come on here and vent about Michigan, but you've lived there for 15 years and do not have the wherewithal to leave? I lived there for nearly two decades and had to relocate for work. Lived in a great blue county about 40 minutes from Lake Michigan. FWIW, there are red counties in Michigan just like there are in New York, including the Hamptons, as well as similar scenice spots around the country.

Maybe you have SAD?

Tough to move when you're a teenager .Western Michigan is full of conservative weenies. Yes, there are a few small pockets of moderates, but you are still surrounded by people who have basically been left behind (mostly maga). Brain drain is a real thing in Michigan. If you aren't an active person and have a somewhat decent income, MI can be ok.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:and the first college town cited by AARP. Guess they didn't get the memo that no one would retire there.

https://www.aarp.org/retirement/planning-for-retirement/info-2016/ten-ideal-college-towns-for-retirement-photo.html#slide1

Those articles are usually written by some 25 year old clueless journalism major who has no idea what they are talking about. Unless you love snowmobiling, ice fishing, and binge watching Duck Dynasty, you will probably not like living in Michigan year round. OK place for students? Probably, but depends on the student. I lived there for over 10 years and it's just a miserable place, full of small town types. A lot of people go to college with friends from high school and most people never leave the state. As another poster noted, it is insular, insular to the extreme.

The writer of the article you were referencing was Anne Field:


https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-field-9000575/

https://annefieldonline.com/


I’m guessing Anne is closing in on 60. I’d say the only clueless one here is you. Spouting off nonsense as is it were fact and so easily
refuted. If you ever did live in Michigan for ten years, you obviously never became a part of any community. Then again with your attitude, I’m sure most people avoided you like the plague.

The difference between me and you is that I've lived in Michigan for 15 years and you read an article you dolt.

So, PP, you come on here and vent about Michigan, but you've lived there for 15 years and do not have the wherewithal to leave? I lived there for nearly two decades and had to relocate for work. Lived in a great blue county about 40 minutes from Lake Michigan. FWIW, there are red counties in Michigan just like there are in New York, including the Hamptons, as well as similar scenice spots around the country.

Maybe you have SAD?

Tough to move when you're a teenager .Western Michigan is full of conservative weenies. Yes, there are a few small pockets of moderates, but you are still surrounded by people who have basically been left behind (mostly maga). Brain drain is a real thing in Michigan. If you aren't an active person and have a somewhat decent income, MI can be ok.

So you're a teenager posting on DMV parent board? How did that happen?

[Anonymous]

My conservative DC loves it in Michigan. But most students are not conservative.

[Anonymous]

Western Michigan is full of conservative weenies. Yes, there are a few small pockets of moderates, but you are still surrounded by people who have basically been left behind (mostly maga). Brain drain is a real thing in Michigan. If you aren't an active person and have a somewhat decent income, MI can be ok.

Okay, but Ann Arbor isn't in western Michigan but in southeastern Michigan (actually, part of the greater Detroit metro area), and the county it's in voted for Biden over Trump by a 73:26 margin. And basically most of rural America -- not just in Michigan -- is filled with maga types (apart from Mass/VT and the southern Black Belt and indigenous communities in the Plains and southwest). And nowadays there's brain drain from virtually all rural communities to the cities, the main difference in Michigan being that many ambitious young types drift to Chicago rather than to metro Detroit (altho Detroit is still the 14th largest metro area in the country -- only ten states are home to a bigger one).

And finally, the dissatisfaction of a teenager living where they grew up, no matter how real, isn't really a good predictor for how a college student will enjoy attending one of the best universities in the country in another part of the state.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Western Michigan is full of conservative weenies. Yes, there are a few small pockets of moderates, but you are still surrounded by people who have basically been left behind (mostly maga). Brain drain is a real thing in Michigan. If you aren't an active person and have a somewhat decent income, MI can be ok.

Okay, but Ann Arbor isn't in western Michigan but in southeastern Michigan (actually, part of the greater Detroit metro area), and the county it's in voted for Biden over Trump by a 73:26 margin. And basically most of rural America -- not just in Michigan -- is filled with maga types (apart from Mass/VT and the southern Black Belt and indigenous communities in the Plains and southwest). And nowadays there's brain drain from virtually all rural communities to the cities, the main difference in Michigan being that many ambitious young types drift to Chicago rather than to metro Detroit (altho Detroit is still the 14th largest metro area in the country -- only ten states are home to a bigger one).

And finally, the dissatisfaction of a teenager living where they grew up, no matter how real, isn't really a good predictor for how a college student will enjoy attending one of the best universities in the country in another part of the state.

There are blue counties in western Michigan - the west coast has been trending blue for the last three election cycles and some inland counties have been blue for decades.

And yes, I agree with PP, teenage dissatisfaction with their perceived wasteland may not be the best predictor for viable college settings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes it does. In from NY. Went to NYU. Visited a close friend at Michigan junior year and always said if I’d gone or two years earlier I would have wanted to transfer. Great academics, great culture, great college town, great sports. It’s the full package. But impossible to get into these days.

How is Michigan impossible to get into when they take 4000 oos kids a year? That’s huge!

What’s Michigan’s yield on oos?

Michigan is markedly easier to get into than penn for example.

It’s not impossible of course, but definitely difficult. Of course smaller elite schools like Penn will always be a harder admit.

Yes, it’s not in penns league. But it’s difficult now, particularly for out of state.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Madison's a small city and state capital, in a uniquely beautiful lakeside setting; Ann Arbor is a very large and dynamic college town. Madison is a little colder in the winter; Ann Arbor gets a little more rain and snow in the winter, while Madison gets a little more rain in the summer. Ann Arbor is closer to (much larger) metro Detroit than Madison is to Milwaukee. Ann Arbor is also reasonably close (25 miles) to DTW which is one of the 20 biggest hub airports in the US; air connections to Madison are tougher - Madison/Dane is a small airport, and MKE isn't very big either and is 85 miles away.

Presumably saying this will unleash more insults from our unhinged Ann Arbor basher, but the fact is the two towns aren't so dramatically different that it should play a major factor (relative to issues like specific academic programs, projected cost, etc) in choosing one university or the other. Or to look at it another way: the gap between the two cities probably isn't as great as the gap between the perceived reputations of the two universities, notwithstanding Wisconsin's excellence.

It's funny: I don't disagree with any of your descriptions, but I think the difference between Madison and Ann Arbor is meaningful (which obviously can cut either way, depending on your personal preferences) whereas any gap between the University of Michigan and the University of Wisconsin is much more perception than reality.

The reality is that Wisconsin has a decidedly lower 4/6 year graduate rate and a considerably higher faculty/student ratio. Sometimes perception is reality. Wisconsin is a very good school, Michigan just beats it in most ways.

Is this for main campus in Madison or all the branch campuses?