<p>So, I just finished junior year and i'm going to be a senior next year. I live in Texas and would really like to attend the University of Michigan. This summer, i want to go on a campus visit. My parents cannot come with me, and so if I go, I have to go alone. i don't know anyone who lives in the area who I can stay with. And I don't think my parents would let me stay in a hotel by myself...and im 17 years old.
How can I stay there for a few days? Is there a way I can stay in the dorms, if I pay?</p>
<p>Btw, I do know some people in Michigan that can pick me up from the airport etc and take me to the campus to stay there. I just need a place to stay overnight. I would like to go in mid-July for about 3-4 days.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I don’t think there’s any way to stay in the dorms. You do have a few options.</p>
<p>Best option: Hotel. Usually, you CAN stay in a hotel by yourself at 17, so long as an 18+ is the one that paid for the room. It shouldn’t be a big deal to the staff to let you sign in, etc. As far as your parents are concerned, consider reminding them that just 1 year from now, you’ll have to do this whole thing by yourself anyways (fly to Mich, get a cab, unpack, etc). </p>
<p>Anything else would be more sketchy. You could see if any of your friends have friends in houses/apartments on campus, and offer to pay a few bucks to crash on their couch for a few days. Or perhaps go on the University Housing website and go to the forum for students looking for subletters-- you could call one of them and possibly work out a short-term deal where you stay in an off campus apartment for a couple days for a fee. </p>
<p>Try calling Housing to see if they have any better ideas… but a hotel is probably your best choice. And worst come to worst, you could always NOT visit. Realistically, if you think you’re gonna like it (you’re probably gonna like it, campus is beautiful), pay the $70 app fee, see if you get in, then make the trip before that final choice between schools.</p>
<p>Thanks for the reply! I looked into hotels, but my parents still don’t really agree. In fact, they don’t even take the process really that seriously…they don’t even listen to what I’m saying half of the time. That’s why I have to figure out all this stuff on my own.</p>
<p>I even called the office of admissions, and they said that they don’t offer these sort of accommodations. But should I still email my admissions counselor anyway? (I met him in Texas when he came to our school last September). And one of my friend’s cousins goes to U of M, so I might contact her too…although I don’t know her at all, so it might be a little weird. </p>
<p>Someone on this forum actually contacted me and said he had an available room in a sublet house, but I’m a girl so I don’t really think that would work out, lol. I’m not worried about being alone the whole time, because I do have friends in MI, but just none that I can stay with. So frustrating :/</p>
<p>Is money an issue? You can stay at the Michigan League Inn. This is a UM owned lodging in the old women’s student union, a gorgeous building, right in the middle of campus. $120 per night.</p>
<p>Have you been to UM before?</p>
<p>Don’t give up on this. I was in a similar situation 30 years ago.</p>
<p>You can also try the Bell Tower Hotel which is right on campus too.</p>
<p>I contacted the Michigan League Inn. They’ll let a minor stay there if a parent arranges for it ahead of time.</p>
<p>I would think that your parents will be comfortable with the place. It’s not a hotel in town. It’s a University facility in the middle of campus, right across from the bell tower and about 100 yards from the Diag - and it’s a high end, beautiful place.</p>
<p>Thank you, again, for the suggestions. Money unfortunately is an issue though. I doubt my parents would want me to spend that much for a few short days, especially since they aren’t exactly enthusiastic about me going to U of M in the first place.</p>
<p>and no, I haven’t been there before. But I’ve been wanting to since the 3rd grade, lol.</p>
<p>Why don’t they want you going there? Too far? Tell them the story of what Bill Clinton told his daughter when she wanted to go to Stanford. Hillary said it’s too far. Bill said, Chelsea, you can go wherever you want. That’s part of why the man went far in life.</p>
<p>How are your grades and scores?</p>
<p>Would you stay with a family? There’s one I could ask.</p>
<p>I might be in Ann Arbor this Sunday. I’ll ask around a bit too.</p>
<p>The main reason my parents don’t want me to go there is because they think it’s pointless to pay out of state fees, when UT (in Texas) is essentially the same. They also want me to “aim higher” for schools like Stanford, UPenn, etc. I have nothing against those schools, but being realistic, I know those schools aren’t really for me. I’m not sure how similar Michigan is to Texas, but I am keeping my options open. Although I’ve wanted to go to Michigan ever since I was a kid, I am still definitely going to apply to Texas. I just want to explore the possibilities for now, before I get too involved in the application process, and see what else is out there. I’ve been to UT Austin many times, because my brother is a student there.
My grades are pretty good. I go to a highly competitive school district and I’m within the top 4 or 5% (have to recalculate it) of my extremely large school. My scores on SAT and ACT are pretty high. I am going to retake those though, because I’m aiming for perfect scores. My parents/friends have told me that they think I will be accepted to U of M, but unless I get financial aid, I can’t attend.
And I’m not sure if I could stay with a family, it really depends. But I don’t think so 
And thank you so much for helping me out! I’m still in the process of trying to figure this out, still haven’t given up yet. Let me know if you come across any other options.
I will PM you my email address, because that’s a quicker way to contact me.</p>
<p>By higher I assume you refer to reputation even though reputation is not synonymous with quality of education. I wouldn’t say that UPenn is higher even though it’s Ivy. I wouldn’t say that Texas is the same, even though it’s good enough.</p>
<p>The cost of UT in particular is hard to beat. And like Ann Arbor if offers what I hear is a great college town. You don’t have to figure out all of this right now. For now you need to do what you are doing, keep up your grades and research the colleges. I’d say it is a good idea to visit Michigan if only because you have been thinking about the place all your life. If need be, stay for one night. Take the first flight in, stay the night, and take the last flight out. Two days can teach you a lot. Maybe you’ll go to UT for undergrad. and Michigan for grad. </p>
<p>Do you have anyone to give you a tour of Michigan? I might be able to find someone for you.</p>
<p>There are tours every week day (I think) during the summer. You don’t even need to sign up if you don’t want to, just tag along with the group. UM is awesome, but really expensive for OoS. Good luck and GO BLUE!!</p>
<p>Btw… Since you are only going into your senior year you may want to come up in the fall when school is in session. The campus is completely different during the school year compared to the summer.</p>
<p>Good news! I found a student that is willing to host me, that lives right on campus! So now the only thing I have to do is convince my parents…which might be hard. But there’s really no reason for me to not go now - the only expense will be airplane tickets, and my dad has tons of mileage so I can get a really cheap ticket.
Thanks for the ideas everyone!</p>
<p>I found a family to host you too, old friends and classmates of mine. Even if you don’t stay with them, they can tell you all about the place as both are graduates and one comes from a family of graduates.</p>
<p>Thank you so much!
I finally talked to my dad about it, and explained to him that I found a student willing to host me and it’s perfectly safe. But for some reason, he just doesn’t want me going. I’m not sure what he has against it. I even told him it would be a nice getaway from Texas for at least a couple of days, because this summer I’m working every single day in a lab under really difficult circumstances and there’s no escaping the Texas heat. He just won’t listen and I’m not sure why. It’s not a money issue because this trip is practically free. My mom was even talking about an ad for a deal that some airlines is having a ridiculously cheap sale for tickets for any city in the US.
Even though my mom is pretty much apathetic about these issues, I might still talk to her about it and maybe she can talk to my dad, though I highly doubt it. And if not, my brother might talk to them because he’s somewhat on my side, haha.
I really hope I get to go, but if I end up not going…at least I did what I could.</p>
<p>No offense, but your family seems like a Lifetime movie! Good luck to you and GO BLUE!</p>
<p>OK, so I was outside grilling the family dinner and was thinking about your situation. Did any of your parents attend a Texas college? I know those people are fanatics about their schools. At Michigan we are only slightly crazy! GO BLUE!</p>
<p>hahaha, yeah, sometimes i feel like my life is a lifetime movie. and my parents didn’t go to texas schools. they’re originally from india, and once they came here they did a couple of courses. they’re not huge fanatics about any schools. they used to live in Michigan a long time ago (before I was even born) though.
but yeah, this is how it is with pretty much everything. my whole life they never seemed to really care what i do, because they were always too occupied with other things. In a way, I’m glad it’s like that because I’m more independent and have developed a bunch of street smarts on figuring out how to do things myself. But all of a sudden within the past couple of months, they’re apparently trying to change and are trying to be “more involved”, so they expect me to be like every other kid in my community. They think I’m mediocre, so the past couple of months they’ve been trying to push me…and then some days they don’t really care. It’s pretty annoying and hard to explain. I guarantee if this was a campus visit to UPenn or some place, they would’ve let me gone. I also know I can’t go to U of M unless I get a scholarship…but regardless, I still don’t see why they can’t let me go. I’ve been planning this for over a year now.</p>
<p>Have you ever seen the movie “Bend It Like Beckham”?</p>
<p>I’m curious. What happens if you just go for a visit without his permission? Sometimes, a young person has to do that.</p>