Hi,
It’s likely i won’t get accepted at UMich, but i still wanted your opinion on these schools. I’m an international going for aerospace engineering. In terms of ranking they are all very close and cost is not a problem.
Which one is the better one (quality of life, campus, college town, education, classes, proffessors etc…) in your opinion, i know it depends on the people etc… but i’d like opinions (subjective) here.
Thanks
D visited all three. She felt that the people at Purdue were the friendliest and she didn’t like the presentation or the campus of Illinois. Ann Arbor is the best college town but she didn’t like that you had to take a bus to get to the north campus where the college of engineering is housed. At Purdue it is the main campus. D only applied to Purdue among the three.
As you said in the end in comes down to personal preference. I realize you don’t have the option of visiting. They are all of similar size, Michigan is the most prestigious overall although for your chosen major you won’t be able to make a bad decision.
@ivvcsf thanks for your interesting reply 
actually i will be visiting but i’m waiting to see the acceptances first, so that i don’t visit where i’m not even accepted.
Yes, they have roughly similar numbers of students, but Michigan’s campus is stretched across 2 spread out campuses, so riding a bus and long walks are likely. Purdue’s academic buildings are tightly concentrated in an attractive and compact area. So, depending on where u live, maybe not much trouble getting to class
I’m also not a big fan of Michigan’s dorms or off campus housing. Maintenance seems to be in short supply there. Those who look forward to telling their grandchildren how delightfully shabby their college housing was Will be happy in Ann arbor.
moooop, Michigan has renovated their dorms in recent years. While they are far from being resort-ish, they do not feel shabby.
You also have Ann Arbor in the mix. A2>>>UC and WL!
Since you’re an int’l willing to pay full freight at all your schools, I wouldn’t be surprised if you got into all of them. I think full pay int’ls frequently have an advantage.
@mom2collegekids We’ll see
@mom2collegekids: Depends on stats, etc.
Internationals have a significantly lower admit rate to UIUC than in-state students. That’s true for UMich as well. Just because they like full-pays doesn’t mean they can’t be choosy since there are so many internationals applying to US colleges (especially top tier ones and ones known for STEM and business) these days.
I’m actually not sure if aerospace engineering is a bit better at UIUC or Purdue. And Michigan would, imo, provide the most well-rounded and solid college experience. Yet Michigan may not be the best in terms of aerospace.
Therefore, if you do visit once you have acceptances, I’d let that be the guiding factor. You state costs aren’t a factor; I’d still check estimated costs before you matriculate, just to be sure.
Try to ask as many specific questions as you can while visiting. Don’t be afraid. And also, try to get to know your potential departments; if possible, maybe even try to schedule a visit with a faculty member (once you are accepted), a grad student, or a program advisor on campus. I did this when I was a prospective – had pizza with one of the grad students on campus – and it was a really nice way to get to know a department and campus better.
@anhydrite Thanks a lot for your advice. I was able to contact a master’s student at Purdue in Aerospace engineering, and maybe i’ll be able to meet him.
Excellent. It may not be possible at every institution, but definitely worth a shot.
Also neglected to mention: these are three great universities for aerospace engineering. You won’t make a “bad” choice here. They really are closely ranked. And rankings don’t necessarily mean a better departmental experience for you. You could have a better experience at Purdue, for example, but only you can ultimately decide.
Michigan, in this case, is ranked slightly higher than I thought. Michigan has always, even way back when I was going to college, charged quite a bit more OOS. But all rank in the top ten for grad programs right now.
“Since you’re an int’l willing to pay full freight at all your schools, I wouldn’t be surprised if you got into all of them. I think full pay int’ls frequently have an advantage.”
Too funny. Michigan has about a 10% acceptance rate for international students, even though the vast majority of them are full pay. There are many more undergraduates who would gladly pay full freight than the school is able to admit. I know this might seem like a bit of a strange concept to some here on CC; universities attracting top stat students without bribes.
“Michigan, in this case, is ranked slightly higher than I thought.”
Michigan was the first university to offer aerospace engineering. That it has the second ranked department for undergrad AE should come as no surprise.
“The University of Michigan started the first collegiate aeronautics program in the United States in 1914. Since then, the Department has graduated more than 6,000 aeronautical and aerospace engineers. Our graduate program ranks No. 1 among public institutions and our undergraduate program ranks No. 2 in the nation by U.S. News for 2014.”
I don’t think there’s a bad choice, but UMichigan and Ann Arbor would have my preference. If you can visit, please do.
Disregarding cost differences there are no bad choices here.
@MYOS1634 @Erin’s Dad Thanks for your answers. UIUC and Purdue are very close in cost, Michigan is a bit more (around 10k more per year in tuition i think) Yes I will visit (i’ll try to wait acceptance from michigan if possible, so i don’t waste time), I just got accepted at UIUC, so that’s one in the bag !
UIUC: did you get accepted into your chosen major? (just checking - it can be hard if not virtually impossible to transfer into your major depending on what you’re hoping for.)
Purdue’s about $10,000 cheaper per year, I believe, so that’s a big plus. The campus is also very compact and convenient compared to some other state flagships (I’m looking at you, UMD College Park).
@MYOS1634 Yes accepted in aerospace engineering
@hungryteenager Thanks for your reply,yes a compact campus is nice, some campuses are overstreched it seems.