Hi everyone 
Can someone educate me on the trimester system at UM and the breaks an undergrad will have? As an international student I am looking at returning to my country during my holidays but there seems to be really little time to return home based on what I see on the academic calendar.
It shows that there will only be 2 periods of 1-2 weeks breaks every year. Correct me if I am wrong. Thanks in advance!
The calendar shows the breaks. You are correct, there is a break for at least 2 weeks between Fall and Spring semesters and a one week vacation in Spring semester. There are a couple of one or two day breaks but that is it. The online calendar will give you the correct information. Trimester can be a confusing term. Basically there are Fall and Spring Terms and summer classes are available as well.
The term “trimester” is misleading. Many think that a trimester system naturally has three principal terms. That is not the case. Just as the quarter system in fact only has three main terms, Michigan’s trimester system is composed of two main terms, the Fall (early September to mid December) and the Winter (early January to late April) terms. In essence, the trimester system is almost identical to the semester system. The only difference is the length of the terms. The trimester term is usually 2 weeks shorter than the semester term, which means you end up having 3-4 weeks more added to your summer. At Michigan, students do not have to take classes from April 29/30 until September 2/3.