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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Opinions on Michigan vs Northwestern? Something like poli sci/IR. Choose based on student preference, or is the larger Michigan alumni network a plus, as in, they're loyal and potentially useful to new grads?[/quote]

As an (originally OOS) Michigan MBA grad, the Northwestern students and grads I have met are very similar types of people.  Friendly, chill, smart, not elitist and yes, often Midwestern.  I have read people saying that Northwestern kids are pointier and quirkier now due to admissions patterns.  But you can decide if you think that matters.  I gather the OOS students at Michigan are pretty similar from the bits of info I pick up.

My kid is an in-state freshman with a poli sci focus at Michigan and has had good conversations and encouragement from profs in his small and specialized classes.  He is a serious and friendly student who regularly participates in class discussion.  Profs like that.  I don't think it would be going so well for a quiet kid who has to be drawn out.

I think Michigan has more of a tradition of public service careers and DC focus.  Also tighter connections with some parts of Asia.  I feel that it has been a globally connected school a lot longer than Northwestern.

Poli Sci and IR are not fully interchangeable.  I'm curious about what area of IR is of interest.  If your student has language and culture areas of interest, schools vary in strength related to that.  I would also say that Michigan's best connections are to DC.  I wouldn't necessarily pick Michigan to get a job at the UN in NYC, for example.  But to go to the Peace Corps or eventually to the Foreign Service (I hear they like work experience first), Michigan would  be a good choice.

Another observation...Michigan has a lot of really cool classes for people interested in the intersection of culture/history/politics, but they are not in the poli sci department. The IR classes to me look actually less mind-expanding than the ones that would be more history and area studies oriented.  But that's a personal reaction.  There certainly are enough courses to fill out a Poli Sci IR track as a sophomore-senior.  I guess I'm more interested in why cultures and countries are the way they are than the exact structure of their governments, political parties, founding docs, etc.

I think students should carefully figure out what's different about the schools related to their specific interests.  I think both schools are equal in many ways that make it too difficult to make a judgment here.

About size of alumni network...that is a very tertiary consideration right now.  You should look at the prominence of alums in the desired fields, if anything.  Sometimes small schools have stronger, tighter networks because there are fewer people and they know each other better.  It's actually impossible to predict how that might play out for your kid unless you are looking at the level of "Is there an alumni club in City X" or my kid wants to work at X organization.  Poke around on LinkedIn...that's the best most people can do.

It's my impression that foreign language classes beyond Spanish, French, and German are really losing ground in the US broadly across academe.  So if your kid has a heritage language to perfect or an area studies interest, they need to factor that in to plans.

Be aware that IR may be a field, like Public Policy, where you get low-paid jobs out of college then need a Master's.  Do look into the risks there.  Obviously the whole institutional environment is in turmoil right now.[/quote]

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