I am a South Korean high school senior studying in Canada.
This year I got accepted by and considering to major in Business & Economics at
University of Notre Dame
UC Berkeley
University of Michigan
UMich seems to rank well in all of these with the slight exception of prestige, the selectivity of UMich doesn’t seem to be as high as the other two schools.
Notre Dame seems to have a beautiful campus, small class size, and AMAZING alumni network. However, in South Korea, it is not as well known as the other two schools.
UC Berkeley has the most prestige and selectivity of the three, and I like its location (near San Francisco). However, I am afraid that grade deflation and the supposed competitive environment will make me miserable here. My brother also attends this school, and he is satisfied but not happy.
In the case of Michigan, are you in at Ross or just LSA? If you are in at Ross, I give the decided edge to Michigan. If you are LSA, then the decision becomes a lot harder, as all three are roughly equal in terms of quality. In such a case, I would go for fit.
As an international student, you need to consider international reputation. Cal and Michigan are very well known, and respected, internationally.
Grade deflation and uber competitiveness are myths at Berkeley IMO. It’s probably more like excuses that students makes when they can’t handle things. Sure, it’s really tough to attend there, the amount of studying needed is insane and the academics is no joke, but my kid was treated more than fairly with his grades last semester for some tough classes.
He’s got a midterm on Tuesday, and there are not one but two university sponsored review sessions in the next 36 hours. So the school does a lot to make you successful as possible, as long as you use the resources.
@ek2000 Comparable question @Alexandre asked above on another university: are you a direct admit at Mendoza for Notre Dame? What is the difference in your respective COA’s? You probably will need to give some additional background information, for folks on this thread to provide you with helpful specific input and feedback. Pro’s and Con’s you listed above seem to be superficial on first glance. Will you have the opportunity to visit, i.e. be able to go to forthcoming admitted students days?