Just got admitted to Michigan

Colleges & Universities A-Z University of Michigan
1

<p>I was admitted as an incoming freshman to Michigan’s LSA a little over a week ago, and it is currently my first choice on my list of possible schools to attend. I’m an in-state student, and have a scholarship that pays for my entire tuition for four years (I still have to pay for room/board), so finances aren’t really an issue.</p>

<p>I have been to Ann Arbor once, which was in 2006 during the MSU/Michigan game, and I really loved the vibrant nightlife I encountered after the game concluded. Having lived in the rather dull city of Kalamazoo for my entire life, it seemed like a very nice change of pace.</p>

<p>I’m ambitious, very goal-oriented, and well-aware of the challenges that Michigan poses in terms of competetiveness among students and the overall difficulty of courses. I am unsure of what I want to study, but I know for a fact that it is going to be a competetive field such as law or medicine.</p>

<p>I have a few questions:</p>

<li><p>I’ve heard that Michigan really has the feel of an Ivy League school in terms of competetiveness among students and difficulty of courses. Should I come in expecting an academic curriculum on par with that of the Ivy League?</p></li>
<li><p>How is the social life at Michigan? Being a highly accredited academic institution, I’m guessing that people are my reserved in Ann Arbor than the students over at MSU. There’s also that common notion among Michiganders that Ann Arbor inherits all of the smart, less attractive girls while MSU reaps in the benefits of physical attractiveness while falling short in the brains department. To what extent is this true? When I was in Ann Arbor, I saw plenty of pretty girls in the student section at the football game, so I’m guessing that this stereotype is somewhat false.</p></li>
<li><p>How prominent are mathematical studies in LSA? I’m considering either Law/Poly Sci or Biology/Medicine as career paths. Unfortunately, my academic weakness has always been mathematics, so I’m worried about mathematics dropping my GPA-- especially because of how competetive the environment is said to be. Are mathematics heavily emphasized in these career paths or are mathematics the focus of schools like the College of Engineering?</p></li>
<li><p>How expensive is Ann Arbor? I know there’s that typical college mark-up to be found, but I recently read that AA was among the most expensive places in the USA to live in.</p></li>
<li><p>How many hours should I be expecting to study? A friend of mine currently attending U of M claims he studies 6 hours a day which he says is the average for people at UMich. He is currently trying to enter Ross Business School, which I know is competetive.</p></li>
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<p>If somebody can answer any of these questions, it’d be highly appreciated. If I have anymore questions, I’ll post them later.</p>

2

<p>Concerning question 3, LSA requires that you fulfill either one Q1 or two Q2 requirements. Q= Quantative Reasoning Course. Stuff like Astronomy, College Algebra, Calc, anything that involves numerical figures. The amount of math courses you must take also depends on your major. I'm planning on majoring in PoliSci so I took a Q1 last semester and I'm done with math forever. Math is my worst area too but I took Stats 350 which was okay compared to like Calc. Stats 350 is a Q1 course and it also grants 4 credits toward your NS requirement so it's a good choice if you hate anything math/science related and just want to get over with these requirements as fast as possible.</p>

3

<p>Here are some answers to your questions:</p>

<p>1) Yes, the academic rigors and curriculum at Michigan are on par with those of the Ivy League. Maintaining a 3.0 GPA is not too difficult, but maintaining a 3.7+ GPA (which is necessary if one intends to be a successful candidate to highly regarded Medical and Law schools) requires a great deal of effort.</p>

<p>2) Social life at the University of Michigan/Ann Arbor is excellent. There are lots of sport bars, pubs, cafes, clubs, house parties and other venues for night time gatherings. Of course, there are also many other forms of entertainment, such as movie theaters, concerts, fairs etc... And with Detroit less than 50 miles away, lots of other world-class venues and events are made very accessible to the student body.</p>

<p>3) If you wish to major in Political Science and go to Law school, you will not have to take much math. However, if you intend to major in Biology with the hope to apply to Medical school, you will have to take a few Calculus and Statistics classes. </p>

<p>4) Ann Arbor is on the expensive side. It isn't as costly as the likes of NYC, San Francisco, Boston or DC, but, with the exception of Chicago, it is quite possibly the most expensive town in the Midwest. </p>

<p>5) That depends on you, your major and what you wish to accomplish. If you are a quick learner, major in a field that comes naturally to you and wish to maintain a 3.3 GPA, you probably won't have to study more than 3 hours a day. But if you wish to major in a subject you consider challenging and want to maintain a 3.7+ GPA, 6 hours a day would probably be required.</p>

4

<p>I want to do a BachSci/Med path too, and I have looked at the math requirement extensively.</p>

<p>Basically, for medicine, you need Calc 1 + something else to be competitive. Usually that something else is stats, astronomy, etc. And if you have taken AP Calc, that first class is already taken care of if you did well on the AP, so you can either continue on, or take Calc 1 over again (which I recommend, because I took Calc II at Oakland University last semester and it was brutal).</p>

<p>Once you talk to your academic adviser, you will know more about your specific situation. I am going to try and weasel out of as much math as possible, and let me tell you, if you hate math, DO NOT TAKE CALCULUS II. Don't even convince yourself that you will do well, because you won't, and the class is hard no matter who teaches it.</p>

5

<p>Thanks for all the help, guys. Also, thanks for the warning on Calc II. I've heard that Calc II is the hardest math course in all of college, so I guess I'm going to have to stay away from it.</p>

<p>Also, thanks Alexandre on the study estimates. Luckily for me, the only subject that does not come naturally to me is mathematics, so I'll be sure to veer clear of that when I can.</p>

<p>Can somebody tell me if studying abroad at UM is worth the financial and social costs?</p>

6

<p>"2. How is the social life at Michigan? Being a highly accredited academic institution, I'm guessing that people are my reserved in Ann Arbor than the students over at MSU. There's also that common notion among Michiganders that Ann Arbor inherits all of the smart, less attractive girls while MSU reaps in the benefits of physical attractiveness while falling short in the brains department. To what extent is this true? When I was in Ann Arbor, I saw plenty of pretty girls in the student section at the football game, so I'm guessing that this stereotype is somewhat false."</p>

<p>Yes, these stereotypes are false AND ridiculous... ALL of them.</p>

7

<p>what is calc II, im guessing linear algebra/ partial differential equations or higher level?</p>

8

<p>To Quincy4: That's great. Thanks for clearing that up.</p>

9

<ol>
<li><p>Yes, Michigan is a HARD school. Many more people underestimate the challenge than overestimate it.</p></li>
<li><p>Six sounds high, unless he is counting everything outside of class. Homework is not the same thing as studying.</p></li>
</ol>

10

<p>
[quote]
what is calc II, im guessing linear algebra/ partial differential equations or higher level?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Nope. Calc II has absolutely no linear algebra or differential equations haha. Not even close. It's integral calculus, sequences, series and a few more topics. Similar to the last half of Calc BC.</p>

<p>The rumor is that it's graded harshly and the curves aren't too helpful. The subject itself is not hard - not compared to dozens of other math classes in the school.</p>

<p>There are several introductory linear algebra courses. Calc III is multi, Calc IV is diff eq (not sure if pdes are even covered). </p>

<p>If were talking about hard classes, the 590s graduate alpha courses (Algebra I and II, Analysis I and II, Complex Analysis, and so on) are hard.</p>

11

<p>To the OP: Congratulations on your acceptance to a top school!! When did you submit your application? Just curious what the turnaround time is for UM applications.</p>

12

<p>My application was completed on October 26th. UM starts reviewing its first batch of applications on October 31st. I didn't get a reply back until December 21st, but many of my friends were getting replies back in early November. It all depends on the person. UM has rolling admissions so you usually get a reply a reasonable time after you apply.</p>

13

<p>Yeah, tetrahedron is right. The subject matter is not that hard once you get it. I'm just saying that if you aren't that great at math, don't think it is a walk in the park.</p>

<p>In my class at OU, which is probably easier than Umich, I got 100% on the first test, and then didn't study for the rest and overall I think I got about a 3.0 in the class. I'm an idiot though, but no matter how much you study, if you aren't cut out for math, don't bother. :)</p>