Hello, all!
I have some really specific issues and questions about transferring to University of Michigan Ann Arbor, and was wondering if anybody (with or without experience) would be willing to help me. Thank you so much in advance!
So, I’m a high school senior that’s lived in Ann Arbor almost my whole life, and my dad works there (Space physics researcher). I applied to U of M Ann Arbor and was unfortunately rejected. The reason I was rejected is that my GPA throughout high school was pretty low (3.0). This is because, during high school, I was extremely sick multiple times (had to get surgeries, almost died of blood loss, chronic pain disorder, got a brain cyst-- pretty serious stuff). I completely understand their decision to reject me as a freshman applicant. However, going to U of M has been my dream for so so long that now that my health issues finally seem stable and manageable, I really want to transfer in after my freshman or sophomore year at another college. These are the questions I have for you guys:
1). What college should I go to in the meantime? I’m going to be majoring in biochem/pre-med, and was accepted to Kettering, Lawrence Tech, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. I’d like to stick with Kettering or Lawrence as they’re close to home, unless Rensselaer would make my chances A LOT better. Does U of M ever accept transfers from those schools? Are they good enough to transfer to U of M from if I have a good GPA? I could also go to WCC, if that would make my chances better.
2). What year should I try to transfer after? I want to go to U of M as soon as possible, but also don’t want to ruin my chances by applying after Freshman year and getting rejected. If I did apply after Freshman year and got rejected because they prefer Junior transfers, would that ruin my chances if I apply again after sophomore year?
3). Are my high school grades going to screw up my chances even if my grades in college are really good and I have a great ACT (32)? I would really hate if my illnesses screw up my education chances years in the future. Would attaching a doctor’s note explaining that I was really screwed up during high school help them understand? I’m honestly capable of getting good grades and being an excellent student, I was just barely capable of getting out of bed throughout most of high school because of the pain 
4). What classes should I take to have a better chance of transferring? What extracurriculars? If I went to Kettering (Which is the one I’m leaning towards) I would have the co-op experience already. Should I volunteer? Lead a club? Which activities do colleges like to see the most?
5). Should I apply as a transfer to LSA or School of Nursing? Which one would give me a better chance of transferring? I heard that LSA is the hardest to get into since most people try to transfer there.
Thank you guys so much for your help. There’s literally no information out there for transfer students, and I’m really getting stressed/depressed about this, because my stupid illnesses screwed me over big time.