OP’s kid is a junior not even through the first half of the school year - I would not at all be concerned that she can’t arriculate her specific reasons for liking Michigan yet. Her interest in it means it should go on her possibles list. She can then do research via Fiske and college websites and tours, if it is still of interest possibly you visit (agree with doing that in a cold weather month to get the true experience, and in our experience HS spring break visits still mean cold weather in locations like Ann Arbor!). The colleges my current senior liked this time last uear are pretty different than what wound up on his final list.

I've visited and had family working there so know quite a bit about it. Also had friends attend.

I am not seeing how this school is any better than UVA or UMD. I'd be curious to know what supposedly makes it better.

Now one thing is that UM is restricted from allowing more than 4,000 OOS students in any given year, so then this exclusivity can lend "prestige" through scarcity.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's a large state school with lots of smart kids and also lots from Michigan.

Isn’t over half oos?

It's about 50-50. They can only take about 50% of the total from OOS, which makes it a tough admit.

Source: https://umich.edu/facts-figures/

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No-- a state school is just that-- a state school. You are nothing but a number. Weather sucks in Mich.

Well said. Knew a kid that didn’t get into UVA but got into Michigan honors. He transferred to UVA his sophomore year. Hated the Michigan cold.

a literal snowflake

Michigan was my DD's top choice as well. (We did visit, but it was in the summertime.) Despite liking Michigan better, she applied ED to UVA. We are VA residents so the difference in tuition between the two schools was a big factor. Given that the two schools are in the same ballpark in terms of prestige (and she liked UVA a lot as well), it made sense to maximize her chances of getting into UVA. She is a first year there now and absolutely loves it and has zero regrets.

One of her concerns (and part of the appeal of Michigan) was that she didn't want it to be like high school 2.0. This hasn't been an issue at all. Kids who want to continue hanging out with high school friends can do so, but kids like my DD who want to branch out can do so as well.

I know this doesn't really answer your question, but thought I'd share my DD's experience. Good luck!

Anonymous wrote:No-- a state school is just that-- a state school. You are nothing but a number. Weather sucks in Mich.

Well said. Knew a kid that didn’t get into UVA but got into Michigan honors. He transferred to UVA his sophomore year. Hated the Michigan cold.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD (HS junior) is set on this school though she has never been. I know it’s a good school, but is it really all THAT?

It is expensive OOS. Can it really be all that different academically from other state schools? Is it hyped because of the sports?

When I ask her why she is so certain she shrugs her shoulders and says, “I don’t know. I just am.”

We don’t have any family members that go there, so not sure where she is getting it from. She said she mentioned it to the guidance counselor, not the other way around.

If your kid can’t articulate her decision making process in a logical fashion for a 200-300k investment, she’s not ready to go to Michigan.

Michigan is great if your kid is willing to work.

It is not worth it if she is going to be at or below the median. She will just be another state school grad along with hundreds of thousands that get pumped out every year except you spent a lot more money and she took on a lot more stress

This is a good answer - I know many who attended Michigan and this is roughly what came to my mind but you put it much better. It is a no brainer in state but worth some careful consideration out of state. Someone who gets into Michigan can get into almost all publics many with strong aid package and more laid back atmosphere.

So much hype comes from peers and social media — it’s not specific to Michigan

No-- a state school is just that-- a state school. You are nothing but a number. Weather sucks in Mich.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To be far, lots of kids say “I don’t know” to their parents to avoid lengthy conversations or debates. She may be articulating it better to her counselor.

The counselor can pay then

This response made my day. Thank you.

Anonymous wrote:To be far, lots of kids say “I don’t know” to their parents to avoid lengthy conversations or debates. She may be articulating it better to her counselor.

The counselor can pay then

*fair

To be far, lots of kids say “I don’t know” to their parents to avoid lengthy conversations or debates. She may be articulating it better to her counselor.

Well Sasha Obama transferred to USC….

Anonymous wrote:Is it a good place for someone who doesn’t care at all about sports? Will they feel like an outsider?

My brother went there and never went to a sports game. He was active in some other clubs and lived in a coop. He isn't someone you would think of as a stereotypical Michigan person but he loved it. Only downside (compared to my private university experience) was that a lot of his friends were from Michigan and stayed there after graduation.