<p>You can also substitute Ann Arbor for the entire Berkeley paragraph:</p>
<p>Good thing about Ann Arbor is that it is a college town and conducive to pedestrians (despite the hills). You can get around easily without a car and public transportation is excellent. The campus is relatively compact. The town caters to students with numerous cheap, good restaurants (gourmet ghetto), bookstores, and shops. Detroit Metro, the Detroit airport is just a 25 minute car ride away. Skiing and gambling in Michigan is a 3 hour drive. </p>
<p>Only difference is we walk to our stadium, which happens to be the largest in America.</p>
<p>actually the new MGM Grand Casino is probably less than an hour from Ann Arbor.....I know random just throwing it out there, but other then that you are pretty much correct, you could technically substitute Ann Arbor for Berkeley in that paragraph</p>
<p>I agree with the above posts, if you live in Cali, Berkeley would be the more appealing school, if you live in Michigan, Michigan would be the much more appealing school, but both Berkeley and Michigan have unquestioned academic prestige(both consistently rated top 3 in public schools and top 25 overall) and you can't really go wrong either way, both are great undergraduate schools</p>
<p>Berkeley's weather > Michigan's but from what I have heard Michigan's party scene > Berkeley's (obviously that can't be backed up statisically or with factual proof)</p>
<p>It is a common misconception that Ann Arbor is full of nerds that have no social life, but some of my friends from high school that went to Michigan State(considered a big party school although academics are slowly improving) said that they enjoyed Ann Arbor a great deal during the MSU vs Umich football game weekend, Michigan's social scene is very underrated</p>
<p>To sum things up though, most students would love to go to either Berkeley or Michigan, especially in today's economy, Berkeley and Michigan for in-state students are clearly the #1 choice to go with</p>
<p>That is true, but let's face it, no one really goes into detroit unless they need to. There's plenty to do in Ann Arbor and Chicago isn't too far if you do want to experience a nice city.</p>
<p>I really think the choice is clear, though. The OP should go to Berkeley. It's cheaper, closer to home and more prestigious.</p>
<p>My hope is to get in to the honors college and get some money to lessen the difference, do you guys still think the choice is clear if that happens?</p>
<p>^ Cal doesn't have an honors college because everybody is honors...;)</p>
<p>Seriously, it's tough to say. If you visit Michigan, like it a lot, and could see yourself happy there for four years and the costs are similar to Cal, I would definitely consider it. The honors college sounds like a great benefit.</p>
<p>i think the ironic thing is that i posted on both mich and cal boards b/c i assumed i was going to get bias toward the school but actually both seem to point me to Berkeley</p>
<p>I think part of the reason for that is the current economy. There's no reason to go into upwards of $100k in debt for a rather equivalent education (depending on IS vs. OOS actual costs, which I don't know offhand).</p>
<p>"That is true, but let's face it, no one really goes into detroit unless they need to."</p>
<p>I've lived in the Ann Arbor area my whole life. I probably go to Detroit on average once a month, and I've never had a reason to go to Chicago. Not everybody is missing out on tons of great special events because they have a misguided perception of Detroit.</p>
<p>You are correct dilksy. Michiganians are their own worst enemies. They always seem to think that the grass is greener elsewhere. Even in the summer! The op has to understand though that most midwesterners are sensible. No one here is going to tell you that you should leave CA to come to a comparable school that will cost you much, much more. This is not to say that we think less of U-M than those who attend Berkeley. Unless Michigan has a program you can't get at Cal, you should save your money and go there.</p>
<p>
[quote]
But I agree that if the OP comes from California, he should stick to in-state schools. I would say the same to a resident of Michigan or Virginia and even residents of Illinois, North Carolina, Texas and Wisconsin.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>hmnnn... I don't think I would totally agree with this.
If you're implying that UMich/UVa/UCLA are equally prestigious, why wouldn't it be a good idea for OOS students to attend either of these schools when they don't like their state flagship school and they can afford the tuition and living cost? I would attend UMich over schools like Dartmouth or Brown as I believe I would be happier at UMich and I know that I would still get the same education as I would get at either Dartmouth or Brown, despite people would argue that Dartmouth and Brown are more desirable schools for undergrad. </p>
<p>To the OP, I believe you've also posted this over at Cal forum. If you really like to attend UMich even if you have offers from Cal or Stanford or anywhere else, go to UMich as it is important, based on personal experience, that you're happy at your college and you like its reputation.</p>
<p>"Michiganians are their own worst enemies. They always seem to think that the grass is greener elsewhere."</p>
<p>Very true. The University of Michigan's reputation in Chicago, NYC, Washington DC, Silicon Valley and internationally is actually greater than it is in the state of Michigan. Wolverines are very proud of their school, but at the same time, they are very critical and whiny! That really hurts Michigan at times.</p>
<p>finally accepted to both and honestly i think the institutions are similar enough that the weather and price point swing this decision decisively into Berkeley's corner</p>
<p>Actually, those two universities have very different campus cultures and Ann Arbor and Berkeley are also fairly different. Visit the two schools and go for fit.</p>