Just for more context, here are some of my personal stats:
GPA (UW): 3.98
ACT: 29 composite (MSU’s 50% ACT range is 24-28 while U of M’s is 30-34… so I’m kind of in that awkward middle-range between the two, lol.)
Class Rank: Unsure, but I believe I am in the top 10%
I don’t know if this influences much, but there it is anyhow.
This is simply not true.
Surely, a Michigan degree will help you get a job—indeed, I would argue that if you are planning to go directly into the workforce after graduation, a University of Michigan degree could give you an edge over a degree from MSU—but it is also about the broad education. That’s why there’s an LSA requirement to complete courses in writing, foreign language, race & ethnicity, and quantitative reasoning, as well as area requirements to complete across various disciplines.
Take a look at the exact requirements for graduation at Michigan and at MSU. That might help you decide. At Michigan there are a lot of requirements outside of your major, particularly if you are in LSA. That’s a feature, not a bug.
By the way, you don’t have to have a major called “clinical laboratory sciences” to go into that field. Major in microbiology or whichever science interests you.
Shouldn’t you wait until you figure out where your accepted?
@brantly Well I did say “please feel free to correct me if I’m wrong” in my first post 
But thank you, this helped inform me. Doing further research, I have been coming across new info that has been clearing stuff up for me, heh. Also, if you don’t mind me asking, did you attend Michigan?
@“Erin’s Dad” “I’m in-state and have been accepted to both schools (LSA for U of M).” That’s what I said in my very first post. Early Action for both schools, got accepted to State in early November and in December for U of M.
So now I’m just gathering info to help figure out where I want to go, it’s nothing hasty. This site in particular has people who give helpful answers and have personal experience and such.
@Much2learn The laidback part or the attractive part? xD
No. I am a parent with a child there.
Whenever people ask, should I go here or there, or should I major in this or that, I always tell them to look at the EXACT courses they will have to take. That often provides the answer.
If the pricing is similar, to go Michigan. MSU is a fine school, but the problem with it is that everyone you meet in the future will assume you went to MSU because you did not get into Michigan.
@Zinhead Eh, people like to assume I’m Chinese and good at math; people assuming I got rejected from X university because I went to Y university wouldn’t be all that different to me in terms of people jumping to conclusions based off little/superficial evidence.
I do agree, however, that I’m in a fortunate position in terms of pricing, especially for Michigan. Their tuition is still a bit more expensive than State’s, even in-state, but yeah, it’s heaps better than being OOS.
You are totally correct, it is superficial. MSU is a good research school on par with IU, OSU, Purdue, Missouri and Iowa, and any graduate can launch a successful career from there. However, despite the fact that it offers decent OOS scholarships to offset the high OOS tuition, it is less popular, at least in our Midwest HS, due in part to the stigma of being the “second rate” school in the state. Good luck with your choice.
@Zinhead is correct , we hear it all of the time. The second statement from an MSU grad (after they tell you how great MSU BB/FB is) is that they got into Michigan but ‘chose’ not to attend. That would be like a Michigan grad telling you they got into Harvard but ‘chose’ not to attend. You would question their sanity, or at least, their capabilities without some major compelling reason (like a big $ scholarship). If the choice was Michigan for full $ vs MSU for free, that would be a much more difficult choice.
I would not question the sanity of someone turning down Harvard for Michigan at all. Michigan strikes me as an all around, great, quintessential college experience.
“ACT: 29 composite (MSU’s 50% ACT range is 24-28 while U of M’s is 30-34… so I’m kind of in that awkward middle-range between the two, lol.)”
You may want to consider do you want to be at a school where you are in the top 25% of accepted students or the botton 25%? It MIGHT mean the difference between excelling in your classes or struggling to keep up with a very competitive group of students. Please note I said “might”.
Similar statements are also frequently made by graduates of NC State, Florida State and, I suspect, a variety of “State” schools. Unless the OP has a strong preference or fit for MSU and the price is the same, they are probably better off at UM.
“The second statement from an MSU grad (after they tell you how great MSU BB/FB is) is that they got into Michigan but ‘chose’ not to attend.”
That is just untrue, and really disparaging to MSU grads. I don’t think that starting flames back and forth is productive. Is the second thing a Michigan grad says that they got into Northwestern, but chose not to attend? Of course not.
And in terms of NC State, which has a very good engineering school-UNC doesn’t even have an engineering school so NC State would probably be the first choice for lots of NC kids.
@Much2learn , that is what I have experienced from many MSU grads - their words not mine. It is not meant to be a flame. As you know there are many ‘mixed’ families in the state and even many conflicted individuals who attended both schools. MSU excels in certain areas, particularly in physics and ag-related subjects, and if the OP is interested in those areas MSU is the logical choice. Any large cost disparity would also affect the OP’s decision. The OP is rightly weighing value of the two schools and determining best fit.
Lots of states have colleges founded with different missions, usually a traditional (liberal arts, sciences, law, etc), A&M, and ‘Normal’ (teaching) university. After 100+ years the lines became blurry but those original areas tend to be the ones with the greatest expertise. The state of Michigan has a unique history because demand for engineering and technology led Michigan, MSU, and others to develop deep expertise. Michigan benefited the most because of its proximity to Detroit (which in the first half of the 20th century was the epicenter of technological development and innovation) plus its earlier start in traditional and professional areas.
I think the OP has a valid point - is it better to be a better than median or worse than median student. Personally, I’d choose the latter because a) I’d learn more and b) I’d be forced to work harder and seek additional help which would lead to (a) . Psychologists would say that the former is better. I suppose that is the reason that the OP is asking the question.
Perhaps the best comment was from my older son, who attended both Eastern and Michigan for UG. He said that the students at EMU were of poorer quality and less motivated than he expected. At Michigan he says they much better, but not as stellar as he expected. The OP may feel that he would not fit in, but I expect that he/she would do fine with a good work ethic.
By the way, the Michigan grad would say that he/she got into Northwestern, but chose the better school