Residential College at University of Michigan?

While I realize that the Residential College isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, I know people who say they would not have chosen the University of Michigan, and instead would have gone to a different collegeentirely, if they hadn’t been able to join the RC. Clearly the RC has some big boosters. Can anyone explain how you apply to the RC, how your application is evaluated, and when you find out whether you’re admitted? If you’re admitted to LSA early action, can you also be admitted to the RC early action?

Also, how do people feel about the RC, both academically and socially? I’ve heard it’s supposed to be a little like having an Oberlin College or Hampshire College within the LSA, and that its more politically active and artsy than the university as a whole, but I’d like to hear from people in the know. I once heard a story about a freshman female from rural Michigan who was assigned to East Quad, where the Residential College is based, even though East Quad was her last choice dorm. She didn’t hate it but said she felt like an oddball there because she felt like the “only” person in the dorm who wasn’t “gay, Jewish, from New York, or all three.” I’m in no way criticizing students who are gay, Jewish, from New York, or all three – in fact, a dorm with lots of people like that sounds like it could be fun – but I wonder whether that’s an exaggeration?

Even if you’re enrolled in the RC, do you really have a dramatically different experience from the people who are just in LSA but not in the RC? Do you end up taking significantly different classes if you’re in the RC? Do you end up participating in significantly different activities on the weekends?

If you decide you don’t want to be in the RC, or you can’t get into it, are there other programs that offer opportunities to join smaller communities within the large university?

Thanks.

My son is in the RC.

You apply to the RC after being accepted into LSA by emailing them. All the instructions are on the RC’s website: http://www.lsa.umich.edu/rc. You can apply at any time now. It’s like rolling acceptance and they just email back and say “you’re in!” It’s a very informal process.

My son is not Jewish, is heterosexual and is from the Detroit area so he’s none of the three things listed there. There are at least 3 young women from his high school who are also in the RC and none of them are Jewish, gay or from New York. Overall, there are a lot of kids from NY and New Jersey at Michigan whether you’re in the RC or not. The entire campus is diverse. I do think the RC kids are more artsy and more politically interested but they also go to football games, parties around campus, hockey games, etc. and have their own RC clubs and social activities available.

His first term, my son had all RC classes and there were less than 20 kids in each of his classes. He came to know his professors well and they knew him well. This term, he took some LSA classes and is in lectures of more than 100 and does not like it much. That’s the key difference in types of classes. Any LSA student can take most of the RC courses offered and RC kids take courses in all of LSA also.

Key differences are the intensive language requirement and the arts requirement. My son is going to fulfill that arts requirement by being in the RC Singers, I believe. Having 8 credit hours of a language is intense but it’s also pass/fail and the lunch tables and coffee tables are another way to meet people while you’re practicing what you learn in class. It sounds like most pass the proficiency exams at the end of Freshman year. (Sometimes into Sophomore year for Spanish students because there are so many of them)

There are a lot of living/learning communities based on your interests. Michigan Scholars something or other, honors, WISE (for women) and they all get you on Central campus too.

If you interested in the RC it would be helpful for you to visit it to see if it is right for you. It is not for everyone.

The RC is really special. It allows you to have a small liberal arts university and a major research U at once. Classes are smaller. The types of people within are more geared towards edification rather than just career. Many of the professors have been there forever and feel an attachment to the program. There’s lots of interdisciplinary coursework. It’s easier to meet people because you’ll run into them more often. If you can’t stand liberals, it may not work for you, which is not to say that you can’t be a conservative type person there. But you will run into many lefties. The building is classic and was recently renovated. It’s in a great part of campus. I recommend it for most.

When we visited UM, we didn’t notice what you were talking about, as far as the stereotypes. Does anyone know the male/female ratio or have other insights to share?

I’m not sure if my comment will be on- or off-point: in addition to the RC, Michigan recently built a new dorm called, I think, North Hall. That building combines housing along with a writing center (Sweetland?) and other academic resources. I don’t know if it is one-stop shopping, but it is possible that the combination of living and learning in a more contained environment would be congenial to those seeking to shrink the size of the institution yet retain the power and resources of the larger university.