I am a current senior (1440 SAT, 4.0 GPA with maximum course rigor) and I have heard that some applicants that are applying EA and are obviously using Michigan as a safety get deferred because it shows a lack of interest. Michigan is my top choice, and the only way I was able to indicate that without ED availability is showing interest when a regional rep attended my high school (introducing, asking questions) and following up via email letting said rep know that this was my “ED.”
After speaking with my counselor, she said based on our regional statistics and my EC portfolio (strong with leadership and involvement) that I am above this range and I am very worried that I might come across as a student using Michigan as a safety (even though I’m not), getting me a deferral death sentence and not getting in.
Is there truth to this? My counselor knows best and I always trust her, but I am worried about this problem. Thanks
I don’t know that anyone thinks of Michigan as a safety anymore, whether in or out of state. Class of 2023’s mid 50% SAT was 1380-1540, so 1440 is below the 50% mark (Writing mid 50% = 680-750, M 700-790).
Are you a Michigan resident? If so, U Mich is probably a match for you, if out-of-state it is a reach. All you can do is control what you control…submit a great EA application and demonstrate interest as you did. You may still be deferred, but many students who are deferred are ultimately accepted.
@Mwfan1921 Thanks for the info. I am OOS and don’t believe my stats put me in the “safety” range for Michigan to get me a potential deferral based on that reason alone, but is there anything extra I can do to show my interest as my top school? I put a lot of time into the essays so that will hopefully shine through, but if there is another way that I am missing I would be inclined to do that
I don’t think Michigan will think you a treating them as a “safety” at all. Continue to show lots of interest, tell them they are your #1 choice and why.
With that said, IME and looking at Naviance at my D’s HS, they tend to waitlist a lot of very high stat applicants (i.e. 1560 and 35 ACT) kids. Anecdotally, UM was the only college that wait-listed our close friend’s D18 who was a stellar applicant that is now at Harvard (accepted to 3 other ivies: Brown, Penn, and Cornell; Duke; and UCB Regents). I’m convinced UM knew she was not going to go to their college with her stats (36 ACT single sitting, 4.0, all 5’s on APs, etc. and great LORs (in 25 years teaching smartest kid, blah, blah, blah).
The bottom line is give it your best shot. You have a chance and if you don’t get in it won’t be because you are over qualified.
I applied to UMich in the EA cycle a couple of years ago. I got deferred when December 20th came around. In early Jan (after 20 days or so) I got accepted with a merit scholarship no less. But I did panic when I was deferred and applied to way too many colleges between the 20th of December and Jan 1st. So my advise to you is stay calm, even if you get deferred because you will eventually find the right college as long as you apply to enough safeties (which UMich certainly is not)
‘Overqualified’ in-state students don’t get deferred very frequently. Michigan is usually the first choice for them. The combination of excellent academics, research experience, sports, and low tuition regardless of income (under $65K = free tuition) make it an unbeatable value. My son’s friends turned down schools like Cornell, Vanderbuilt, and Columbia. They only went if accepted at Harvard or Stanford. Our family saved over $200,000 thanks to Michigan, and my son can come home for laundry or family gatherings. Go Blue!
@PrdMomto1 Talked about the value of experiential learning in the REAL.LEAD Ross programs and connected it to the way I have experientially learned in high school (internships). How does that sound? I liked the topic because it dug into a lot of additional research and wasn’t a generic fact
Your GPA is unweighted correct?
Michigan last year class was LSA 3.9 with 32-35 Act. Engineering 3.9 with 34 Act. Not much of a difference.
Lots of OOS kids visit during their Junior year if they are able to. Can you visit now?
You have done what I call a Letter of intent (LOI). I think that is very positive. If deferred you will send it a Letter of Continued Intent (LOCI).
In your essay look up the moto and mission statement.
Essay is fine but also you need to tell them why you are a good match for their campus. What do you bring to make their campus stronger? Why do you see yourself on campus. Don’t tell them what they know (high ranked, research, alumni… Go deeper), make it about you not a program per se.
It may seem like a death sentence at that time. If UMichigan is your top choice let them know that through your essays. Your genuine interest will show through. Keep in mind that colleges are putting together/moulding their classes and it might take a bit of time for them to see if and where you fit in. However, I have read about ‘Tufts syndrome’ where colleges apparently reject students that they think use them as ‘safeties’.
I think all we can do is be sensible and realistic while applying and let the chips fall where they may. This is all in hindsight- I have to admit that I did not have that kind of wisdom when I was a senior
Roughly 40,000 students apply EA. UMich accepts about 7,000-8,000 EA apps. A great many will obviously be deferred and some rejected. Another 7,000-8,000 applicants will be accepted during RD.
Just as an FYI, if deferred, then UMich will typically have waves of RD acceptances, waitlists and rejections on or around 2/1, 3/1 and 4/1. A few later than that. As time passes, an acceptance will become more difficult. Just to give you a “lay of the land.”
That’s really just a speculative opinion with no substance to it. It’s nothing to be concerned over. There’s a number of different reasons why an applicant gets deferred. It comes down to one very simple fact. There’s more applicants than they have slots to accommodate, but there’s always a percentage of accepted applicants that choose not to enroll. Each accepted applicant has to choose between 4 or 5 other colleges too.
No, schools don’t defer or reject applicants for being “overqualifed.” That’s why scholarships exist, to attract those students.
