My gpa is sub-par for Michigan, especially as an OOS applicant, however in-state applicants with my gpa have been accepted. I’m wondering if my great ECs, essay, and legacy status will help me stand out or if my gpa will ruin my chances of getting in.
Sure they do but it’s tough to get in for everyone! What other schools are you waiting to hear from?
@Fishnlines29 NYU and Vanderbilt, but my parents didn’t realize how expensive NYU is so if I get in I’m not allowed to go. Also, I have 0% chance of getting into Vandy and I 100% expect to get rejected, which I won’t be upset about. Michigan is by far my top choice and if I don’t get in then I am left to pick from a bunch of very average schools, none of which I want to attend. 
even in state applicants with a good gpa and test score are rejected, so yes michigan does use a holistic approach. this girl with a 34 act and 3.9 gpa at my in state top 5 feeder school was deferred then waitlisted from michigan but accepted to ucla and uc berkeley. you have to realize that the other applicants to michigan also have great extracurriculars, essays, AND a good gpa, so its competitive. if you look on michigan’s common data set, gpa and course rigor are the most important factors while essays are important and extracurriculars are considered. legacy can only help so much. michigan is a public university so obviously in state applicants with slightly lower gpas will get in but i know plenty of in state applicants rejected with 3.7-3.9 gpas. gpa is the most important and michigan is getting hard to get into even for in-state applicants! remember you can always transfer to umich!