I was accepted to Michigan as an economic major. I am not even sure if economics is what I want to major in, as I have so many other interests like politics, business, entrepreneurship, philosophy, math, science, drama, creative writing, etc. If Michigan could provide a better environment to cultivate these interests, that would be a major boost. My other two options are NYU Stern and Carnegie Mellon. I am worried that if I choose to focus on business, I will not get into Ross, in which case I should have gone to Stern. I am also worried that Michigan lacks the prestige of the other two.
Where are you from? Michigan is more prestigious than NYU in general (ignoring the Stern bit). Where is the NYU prestige bit coming from. Most kids in the NY area don’t even consider it!
If you want business, and need certainty, go for Stern. If you think you might not do business, Michigan LSA is much better than being in NYU arts & sciences.
I can tell you much about CMU, but it is on par with Michigan, and better in some fields of study.
Are you an upcoming freshman? UMich LSA does not admit you directly into a major.
I am not sure I understand what you mean. You can apply to Ross at the end of freshmen year which is their regular admission pathway for filling over 3/4 of the class. You can still minor (or even double major) on anything in LSA.
Op is afraid of committing and then not getting in for Sophmore year. Stern is a direct admit.
^ I see. Although the sophomore Ross admission rate is ~40%, 60% chance of not getting in is certainly something to consider.
As long as finances are equal Stern is the better choice. Stern and Ross are both great business schools, but the sure thing at Stern is much better than a maybe at Ross. At NYU you can easily transfer out of Stern to another NYU school or do a double major or minor. NYU Arts & Sciences and Michigan LSA are comparable. Maybe slight edge to Michigan, but only slight. The biggest difference for me would be financial considerations and location. I would choose Manhattan over Ann Arbor, but that’s just a personal preference.
Carnegie Mellon is outstanding, especially for sciences and engineering. Not sure about their humanities and social sciences.
“I was accepted to Michigan as an economic major.”
<== Congratulations, one of the best departments in the country;
“I am not even sure if economics is what I want to major in, as I have so many other interests like politics, business, entrepreneurship, philosophy, math, science, drama, creative writing, etc. If Michigan could provide a better environment to cultivate these interests, that would be a major boost.”
<=== UM political science dept. is one of the top 1-4 in the country, depending on subdiscipline;
<=== UM Undergraduate business ranked around #4;
<=== UM Philosophyy department is one of top 5-10;
<=== UM math is probably ranked 7th or 8th, but top 5 in a handful of disciplines;
<=== UM Science, most programs are in the top 20 or so; several massive new buildings coming on line;
<=== UM drama is one of top 3 in the country if you mean SMTD; several massive new theaters built in last 10 years;
<=== UM creative writing: Michigan offers a number of awards to writing and has heavily funded writing centers at both undergraduate and graduate level (Hopwood, Sweetland, Zell-MFA);
<=== Over 100 UM departments at graduate level in the top 10;
<=== many UM undergraduate programs in top 10 or top 20
" My other two options are NYU Stern and Carnegie Mellon. I am worried that if I choose to focus on business, I will not get into Ross, in which case I should have gone to Stern. I am also worried that Michigan lacks the prestige of the other two."
<=== Michigan probably has as many departments ranked highly as NYU and Carnegie Mellon combined;
Carnegie Mellon is a bit of a boutique with deep pockets of excellence in engineering: comp sci and robotics; Michigan probably dominates almost all other phases of engineering and is close to equal in those two areas. Strangely, CMU also has a great drama department, but here again, Michigan is roughly comparable at the same level. I would guess that as to prestige, whatever that is, Michigan probably has that attribute in most areas and countries in the world in a slightly greater abundance than CMU
NYU competes heavily versus Ross with Stern as to business. NYU competes strongly with the Tisch school (money/endowment provided by a UM graduate) versus Michigan’s SMTD. I doubt that NYU has a single department in engineering that competes with Michigan. In the social sciences and the liberal arts, I would guess that in an across the board comparison there is no doubt that Michigan is stronger. Again, as to prestige, even in NY I think that Michigan’s alumni presence would give NYU a run for the money. That said, in New York, the NYU alumni body is much much larger and probably much more influential.
Carnegie Mellon’s strengths are primarily its engineering and theatre. NYU’s is business and theatre. Michigan’s is business and engineering. Beyond that, all three schools are very respectable in a wide variety of fields. In your case, I’d recommend Michigan because of the interests you listed:
Politics: Gerald R Ford School of Public Policy is one of the top in the nation.
Business: Ross. Enough said
Entrepreneurship: Zell Lurie Institute is a dedicated program with extracurricular workshops on entrepreneurship,
Creative Writing and Drama: New Fine arts building just constructed on North campus
Math, Science: Among the top in the nation; I get monthly Math Missives emails with job postings from Goldman, JP Morgan, Google
Actually Wolverine 19, Michigan has great strength in theatre as well. I would say that the quality of the School of Music, Theater, and Dance is every bit as good at the other two schools mentioned, if not better. Michigan is easily a top five/ten program in this part of the arts.
http://musicschoolcentral.com/discover-the-10-best-colleges-for-musical-theater/3/
“Perhaps the strongest musical theater program in the nation, the University of Michigan MT program graduates students every single year that end up on Broadway, television, and in companies throughout the nation. Top agents, casting directors, and Broadway producers recognize the selective talent pool at Michigan, as well as the high-level of instruction in the “triple-threat” disciplines of dancing, acting, and singing. The program is situated within the University’s School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, meaning that the musical theatre students not only get to study with top musical theatre professors, but also accomplished dancers, classically trained vocalists, and world-renowned actors. Although it is not close to the musical theater cultural epicenter of America, New York, Ann Arbor has plenty of intriguing opportunity and a bustling arts scene for students to engage in during an undoubtedly busy four-year undergraduate degree.”
Keep in mind, the minor in business (also competitive admission) offers the same/similar career resources as the BBA major, along with the other perks of Ross.
@blue85 Well, that’s good to know! Also OP, yikesyikesyikes has a good point: you can apply for a business minor, and thereby get full access to all of Ross’ resources this way. HOWEVER, the current size of the Bus. Minor class is 50. Yes, 50. It is VERY difficult to get into to. So just keep that in mind.