Costs for Internationals

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Michigan
1

<p>Hi i'd like to get an idea of the various financial costs in attending U-M for an international student. The generalized estimates given on the websites are hardly accurate enough especially when it comes to certain areas like Living costs and expenses, transportation etc.</p>

<p>I'd like to hear from graduated international students, attending and perhaps even those who are deciding to attend. Any advice on how you plan to finance your U-M education would be most valuable. </p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

2

<p>I’m an international freshman at UM, and I’m going to tell you straight up that the university offers little financial aid to international student, as “University admissions policy requires that international students (those with F-1, F-2, J-1, J-2, and G series visas) have enough resources to meet their expenses throughout their stay at the University.”</p>

<p>If you live in the dorms, the room cost is on the housing website. I’m on a 150 meal plan, and I ran out about a week before the semester ended, because I ate out 1~5 meals a week and skipped breakfast sometimes. If you’re in a house, the rent’s going to be roughly $500~$800, and add in utility bills.</p>

<p>I only spent money on transportation once throughout the whole semester. The blue university buses are free to everyone, and the white AATA buses (which covers all of Ann Arbor) are free to students.</p>

<p>You aren’t going to get much financial aid as an international student. You can apply for scholarships from specific schools if you’re in a specific major (i.e. School of Music) or outside scholarships/loans.</p>

3

<p>Marvin, tuition and room and board are a fixed cost and will make up 85% of the total cost of attendance. As an international student, you are not going to get any sort of financial aid. </p>

<p>Other costs (which makes up the remaining 15%) are pretty standard and very easy to calcultate, but can varry from student to student. But even then, what does it matter whether you miss the mark by $2,000. Your entire cost of attendance will easily exceed $50,000/year, so that $2,000 variance is a proverbial drop in the bucket…so to speak!</p>

<p>At any rate, here are a few things you can expect. </p>

<ul>
<li><p>Books will cost approximately $1,000/year, but some pay less if they used books can still be used for the new classes. </p>

<ul>
<li>Medical insurance (which is required for all international students) will also cost roughly $1,500. </li>
</ul></li>
<li><p>You can easly estimate the cost of plane tickets to your country </p></li>
<li><p>You can decide what kind of computer you wish to purchase</p></li>
<li><p>Transportation on campus is free and around Ann Arbor is pretty cheap. I do not think transportation will cost you more than $400/$500 per year, including cabs to the airport and back. </p></li>
<li><p>Addtional costs, such as additional food (going out with friends, taking a date out for a nice dinner, going to the movies, CDs, clothes, magazines etc…) will probably cost anywhere between $1,500 and $3,000 per year…and that is the only place where real fluctions in cost will arise. </p></li>
</ul>

<p>Now, when you decide to live off campus, you will have to decide the kind of arrangement you want. Do you want a studio in a nice building (Tower Plaza) or do you want a room in a house with friends. The former will probably cost $12,000-$15,000 year (utilities included) whereas the latter will probably cost $6,000-$8,000 per year (utilities included). </p>

<p>Providing for your own meals (including entertainment) without eating in dorms will cost a student anywhere between $7,500-$15,000/year depending on your eating/socializing habits. </p>

<p>So, if you live on campus, the total cost should be roughly $55,000/year. The cost of living on and off campus does not fluctuate nearly as much as many think.</p>

4

<p>According to the information on the internet, $34,937+$5,424+$3,500 are tuition+room(two people)+board(150 block meals). while for the rest i guess we have, like Alex said, the health insurance $1200, fight tickets $700-1000(one time per year back to home at most parts in East-Asia).</p>

<p>however, one of my friends studying in the U of Notre Dame said he can save some money in book supplies and personal expenses to keep them at about $500 and $800 respectively. SO in TOTAL i would expect $47,161.</p>

<p>What’s more, one of friends@UC-berkeley(he received no financial aid so i guess no work-study pass) worked on-campus and earned $11 per hour and about $800 every month so hopefully $5,000 a year.</p>

<p>if you work hard, you may keep it at $42,500. but i just estimate since i am also a newly-admitted student.</p>

5

<p>@Alexandre,</p>

<p>hey, Alex, does living off-campus require more money? I mean you indicate “the latter will probably cost $6,000-$8,000 per year” and “Providing for your own meals (including entertainment) without eating in dorms will cost a student anywhere between $7,500-$15,000/year”.</p>

<p>one more question, are internationals allowed to work on campus, like my friend in UC-berkeley?</p>

6

<p>Alexandre, from their [official</a> home page](<a href=“http://www.towerplaza.net/"]official”>http://www.towerplaza.net/), Tower Plaza has been converted into a condominium. It is no longer an apartment complex. </p>

<p>However, there are other newer [campus</a> apartments](<a href=“http://www.mlive.com/business/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2009/04/2_highrises_opening_in_may_zar.html"]campus”>2 high-rises opening in May; Zaragon Place and 4Eleven Lofts will change face of student housing - mlive.com) that the OP can consider such as Zaragon Place (S. University), 411 Lofts (Liberty), and the Courtyards (Plymouth/North Campus). The newest campus residential dorm, [North</a> Quad](<a href=“http://www.annarbor.com/news/education/post-6/"]North”>New North Quad residence hall complex on track for opening in fall 2010), will open in Fall 2010.</p>

7

<p>“Addtional costs, such as additional food (going out with friends, taking a date out for a nice dinner, going to the movies, CDs, clothes, magazines etc…) will probably cost anywhere between $1,500 and $3,000 per year”</p>

<p>I think even $3000 is quite a huge underestimation, obviously it depends on the person as you said.</p>

8

<p>I don’t know what they say… but if you’re looking to save money:</p>

<p>-In 2 semesters I spent about $50 on books (Lab book and course pack for Chem). Download it, work with someone else in your class, borrow one, don’t buy it. A lot of the time you never need the book in the first place. </p>

<p>-UMich Busses are free. AATA busses are free. </p>

<p>-You don’t need a computer. There are plenty around. You’re not going to take notes on it in class. </p>

<p>-Skip the meal plan, take a bus down to Meijer, and buy groceries. You’re not going to cook any meats more expensive than hot dogs in a microwave, cost per meal will be more like $2 or $3 instead of $8 for a meal plan. That and you’ll meet plenty of people who never use their guest meals (or even their own meals if they’ll let you borrow your MCard), ask one of them for one sometimes. </p>

<p>-If you’re willing to live a little farther and take the bus (a free bus…), Ypsi isn’t a very expensive place to live. You could probably find something in the $400/month range. Even if you live alone, you’ll still save more than half the cost of room.</p>

9

<p>thanks for the response guys, helpful advice about the books especially.</p>

<p>i know that costs for tuition, board and room etc. are roughly the same and hence the costs of attending UM are within a small range.</p>

<p>What i was more interested in is personal expenses and experiences.
Assuming parents are the main sponsors of your education, how much do they fork out for you every month or maybe how much do you need from them?</p>

<p>Adding another finance/costs related question, how is the $50+k per year paid out? For example is the $30-odd k for tuition paid every semester or what? </p>

<p>Thanks again for the help!</p>