<p>Ok, so I am going to be transferring from my current school, the University of Cincinnati for the spring semester. I have been accepted into the University of Illinois and the University of Michigan. Now, I have a ridiculously tough choice because there are pros and cons for both. </p>
<p>Michigan - I applied and was accepted for freshman undergrad last year, so this is my second time getting in. Last time, I received a scholarship for $10,000 a year which would help make tuition manageable. Assuming I receive that scholarship again, tuition will be a semi-workable $29,000. I am planning to major in history with a pre-med intent. Michigan's history program is ranked top 10 in the country, and many websites have U-M as a top 10 college for pre-medicine as well. I absolutely love their history program. I think it's set up very well, and it seems thoroughly comprehensive for a well-rounded education. My parents went to Michigan, so I've been raised a Michigan man my whole life. I'm a big sports fan, so obviously the football and basketball at Michigan really pump me up. I love the city of Ann Arbor, much better than my current ghetto of a city in Cincinnati. The major drawback for U-M is that I know absolutely no one there. I think it could be tough to get to know people with a semester's late start, plus I'm a rather introverted person.</p>
<p>Illinois - Huge positive going for Illinois is that it's relatively cheap for an in-state resident like me. $15,000 tuition, though housing is a ridiculous additional $10,000-15,000. The other huge positive is that my three best friends from high school go there, so I'd already know people going in. Illinois is ranked slightly lower than Michigan in history. I'm sure it's a good program, but it doesn't seem as amazing as Michigan's. I'm not a huge fan of Champaign-Urbana, but it beats Cincinnati, that's for sure. I'm not exactly thrilled about going to college in the state of Illinois either because I simply cannot stand Illinois. It's a corrupt, poorly run state and sans Chicago, extremely boring. Another problem I have with U of I is the massive amount of greek life there. It almost seems like you HAVE to be in a fraternity to have fun. Finally, the last problem I have with U of I is that the vast majority of students are from the Chicago suburbs. Having grown up and interacted with people in a Chicago suburb for a decent portion of my life, I really don't like them much. They seem snooty, entitled, ignorant, and arrogant. </p>
<p>In summary, Michigan seems to have less problems for me personally, but the two biggest knocks against it (knowing nobody and money) are BIG. Conversely, U of I has a bunch of problems but the few bright spots (knowing people and money) are BIG. I also think U of I might be a bit better in terms of getting into medical school because I've heard that science classes at U-M are cutthroat. A lot of grade deflation going on there which would obviously hurt my chances. I'm not basing my final decision on what I hear from people on the internet, but I think it couldn't hurt to get some new perspectives on it. Any thoughts or advice?</p>