<p>Someone I know chose Emory over UMich based solely on prestige and I was surprised to say the least (he had never been to Emory in his life but felt that since it was ranked higher and had a slightly higher SAT average, it was the better school) It seems as if Michigan dominates Emory in pretty much every aspect, despite its higher ranking in USNews. Tell me, am I wrong in thinking that UMich is a better school or is Emory really that good? </p>
<p>BTW, he is out of state for UMich and very wealthy so money was not an issue.</p>
<p>I got into Mich and Emory. There was no question for me. Michigan is the better school, it may be ranked lower because it accepts so many more kids, but in terms of opportunity, it is my belief that Michigan offers more. Engineering was the big key for me.</p>
<p>Emory is very good...but it is not more prestigious than Michigan. I can only think of three reasons why somebody would chose Emory over Michigan. </p>
<p>1) They want a smaller school with a cozier feel.</p>
<p>2) They hate cold weather.</p>
<p>3) They HAVE to live in a big city.</p>
<p>Only in the USNWR world is Emory ranked higher than Michigan, and only just. In any other ranking, Michigan is ranked significantly higher. However, in terms of undergraduade education, rankings aren't that important. Both schools are awesome, so your friend will be just fine, but his decision-making skills leave much to be desired! LOL</p>
<p>PS: If your friend chose solely on the basis of selectivity, I'd say he probably did not look carefully. Emory's mean SAT score is 1380 and Michigan's is 1330, but Emory reports SAT scores differently from Michigan, given Emory an unfair 30-50 point edge. In the end, the average student at both schools are roughly the same.</p>
<p>I agree that the OOS student at UMich and the Emory student are quite similar. For undergrad they are very similar in prestige, depending on the region one may have an edge over the other, and both have top pre- professional programs. There are, imo, many valid reasons to choose Emory over UMich, ATL for one, however USNWR does not provide any.</p>
<p>I faced a similar dilemna and chose Emory as my #1 after visiting both schools. Both are excellent schools but they are quite different.</p>
<p>Several observations I noted:</p>
<p>Emory:
Facilities / resources at Emory were incredible
Smaller intro courses taught be Profs
Atlanta nearby
Great opportunities to work with profs
6:1 student: teacher ratio
Excellent advising system throughout all 4 years</p>
<p>Michigan:
Great academic depts in my area of interest
More lively campus
Greater school spirit
Ann Arbor is a real good college town
OOS tuition was expensive for a public university</p>
<p>In the end it wasn't about ranking since I consider both schools to be similar in terms of academic quality. It's all about fit. For me. Emory College was a hybrid of a LAC and major research institution. I could definitely see myself attending Michigan as a grad student. </p>
<p>All 10 of my friends from our NY HS applied and were accepted to Michigan. 2 or 3 will attend. If I were a Michigan resident I would have prob chosen Michigan. </p>
<p>Choose whatever meets your needs best, you can't go wrong either way.</p>