Umich vs UT Austin: Premed

College Search & Selection
1

I know that I don’t have any time left but I really need to know where to go for the next four years of my life. I got accepted into Michigan LSA and UT and I’m looking to go into premed. I originally applied for UT’s neuroscience but instead got my second choice major, psychology. I’m a Texas resident, so I got instate for UT and the freaking expensive OOS tuition for Michigan. Although going to Texas may be comfortable (as I’d be close to my family and have cheaper tuition), I want to have a more global college experience (even though I know UT is #3 in study abroad programs, but I want more than just studying abroad).

I visisted both campuses and I really liked basically everything about Michigan except for, again, its freaking high tuition (which for me comes around $60,000 a year compared to UT’s $25,000 annual tuition). My parents said that they’re willing to pay for either one.

I tried applying for Michigan’s honors program and four-year scholarship but missed both deadlines. I heard that Michigan’s premed programs are #1 and that Michigan is a top tier level 1 school (nationally ranked #27) compared to UT (#49) not to mention that it does have a powerful network as well as prestige (not saying that UT isn’t well known but that Michigan is pretty famous). Also Michigan has its own hospital so I’m guessing it can be really convenient for hospital volunteering, research, internships, etc. At the same time, I got into UT’s Jefferson Scholars Program, but I don’t know how that’ll help me really. If I go to UT, though, I’m considering transferring to the College of Natural Sciences (and maybe into its honors program) because that’s where I originally wanted to be, but I don’t know if it will be difficult or not.

What I’m really worried about is that if I go to UT, although I’d be closer to my family and be more comfortable by paying less tuition, I’d miss a lot of opportunities at Michigan (and maybe some of its prestige) but also be bombarded with higher competition than at UT. However, if Michigan is similar to UT but I go to Michigan anyway, I’d be carrying a $160,000 price tag along with Med School tuition. Basically, is the price tag worth the education and premed preparations I’ll be getting at Michigan?

edit: I posted this discussion on the wrong thread but everyone said that UT is better because it’s cheaper. Aside from money, is Michigan really worth it, even if I didn’t get into any honors/special programs?

2

Wrong place for thread, but most posters are going to say save your money and go to UT. These are two very large public universities and will give you virtually the same experience. You will miss no opportunities. You will be one of thousands except at UT you will be special in the sense of being a Jefferson Scholar, the more I type the more its obviously UT.

3

Based on the financial consideration, this is an easy choice = UT-Austin.

4

What opportunities do you think you would be missing by attending UT?

Save your money because if you DO get accepted to medical school, you will need the money for that.

5

Didn’t you say your cost per year at Michigan is $60,000? If so…that’s $240,000 for four years and that doesn’t account for any increases in costs for the four years of undergrad.

6

As a Texas resident, wouldn’t attending UT Austin for undergraduate allow you to save money for medical school and be more convenient to travel to interviews at (lower cost) Texas public medical schools if/when you apply?

7

There is no way I would spend 4 years of my life in Ann Arbor, especially if Austin is the alternative. And I advised my child as such.

8

Michigan not worth it with Austin as the alternative. I think it’s insane to enrich another state school that is equal or close to quality and name recognition without getting a comparable price.

9

That’s exactly how I feel, and my Class of 2022 kid felt, except the other way around. :smiley: My DC18 picked AA and loves it!

If money were no object, then I’d pick UMich. If money matters, then UT is the obvious choice.

10

Same prestige. Don’t worry about that. It’s very common for the proximity and familiarity to lessen the attractiveness of a state flagship. UT is an academic peer of UMich. If you are going to med school you’ll need another 300k perhaps. And Texas has great med school options.

However if the money issue is irrelevant in the end, no one would ever second guess you choosing UM either.

11

UT and UM are both among the top public universities in the country. You would be wise to save the money and go to UT, especially if med school is a consideration in your future.

12

I know that I don’t have any time left but I really need to know where to go for the next four years of my life. I got accepted into Michigan LSA and UT and I’m looking to go into premed. I originally applied for UT’s neuroscience but instead got my second choice major, psychology. I’m a Texas resident, so I got instate for UT and the freaking expensive OOS tuition for Michigan. Although going to Texas may be comfortable (as I’d be close to my family and have cheaper tuition), I want to have a more global college experience (even though I know UT is #3 in study abroad programs, but I want more than just studying abroad).

I visisted both campuses and I really liked basically everything about Michigan except for, again, its freaking high tuition (which for me comes around $60,000 a year compared to UT’s $25,000 annual tuition). I tried applying for Michigan’s honors program and four-year scholarship but missed both deadlines. I heard that Michigan’s premed programs are basically #1 and that Michigan is a top tier level 1 school compared to UT (Also Michigan has its own hospital so I’m guessing it can be really convenient for hospital volunteering, research, internships, etc.). At the same time, I got into UT’s Jefferson Scholars Program, but I don’t know how that’ll help me really. Also, if I go to UT, I’m considering to transfer to the College of Natural Sciences because that’s where I originally wanted to be.

What I’m really worried about is that if I go to UT, although I’d be closer to my family and be more comfortable by paying less tuition, I’d miss a lot of opportunities at Michigan but also be bombarded with higher competition than at UT. However, if Michigan is similar to UT but I go to Michigan anyway, I’d be carrying a $160,000 price tag along with Med School tuition.
I really don’t know what to do and what would be the best not only for my college experience but for pre med and my future preparations for medical school

13

If fit is a really major concern (and it is 100% okay if it is) and you can afford it → Michigan. Otherwise, I would definitely go the UT route. Both schools will serve a premed well.

14

If you love it you return, here are the top retention rates. Both UM and UT have impressive retentions rates for public universities.

Columbia University
New York, NY
99%
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA
99%
University of Chicago
Chicago, IL
99%
Yale University
New Haven, CT
99%
Brown University
Providence, RI
98%
California Institute of Technology
Pasadena, CA
98%
Dartmouth College
Hanover, NH
98%
Northwestern University
Evanston, IL
98%
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ
98%
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
98%
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN
98%
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA
98%
Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA
97%
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY
97%
Duke University
Durham, NC
97%
Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, GA
97%
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA
97%
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD
97%
Northeastern University
Boston, MA
97%
Rice University
Houston, TX
97%
Tufts University
Medford, MA
97%
University of California–Berkeley
Berkeley, CA
97%
University of California–Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA
97%
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI
97%
University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC
97%
University of Rochester
Rochester, NY
97%
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, VA
97%
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
97%
Washington University in St. Louis
St. Louis, MO
97%
Georgetown University
Washington, DC
96%
Lehigh University
Bethlehem, PA
96%
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL
96%
University of Maryland–College Park
College Park, MD
96%
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA
96%
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Worcester, MA
96%
Boston College
Chestnut Hill, MA
95%
College of William and Mary
Williamsburg, VA
95%
University of California–San Diego
La Jolla, CA
95%
University of Georgia
Athens, GA
95%
University of Texas–Austin
Austin, TX
95%
University of Wisconsin–Madison
Madison, WI
95%
Villanova University
Villanova, PA
95%
Emory University
Atlanta, GA
94%
North Carolina State University–Raleigh
Raleigh, NC
94%
Ohio State University–Columbus
Columbus, OH
94%
Stevens Institute of Technology
Hoboken, NJ
94%
University of Washington
Seattle, WA
94

15

i’ve visited both and they’re both very nice and have good stats, personally i think UT is the better option since it’s more affordable and i don’t think you’ll be missing anything there. you can also always transfer later if you don’t like it

16

“There is no way I would spend 4 years of my life in Ann Arbor, especially if Austin is the alternative. And I advised my child as such.”

That’s your misfortune.

17

You are worrying far too much about prestige. Like Michigan, UT Austin is one of the best universities in the world, and it’s the only public university in the US with an endowment as large as Michigan’s. Additionally, Austin is a great town, the weather is nice, there’s tons of school spirit and great athletic teams, and you’re saving a massive amount of money. What’s not to like?

You’re hardly missing out by going with such an excellent in-state option.

18

“Like Michigan, UT Austin is one of the best universities in the world, and it’s the only public university in the US with an endowment as large as Michigan’s.“

The University of Texas has a total endowment of over 24 billion, but that amount is for all its campuses (8) comprising over 214,000 students. Michigan’s endowment is over 12 billion, but that amount is for a total of 62,000 students (3 campuses).

19

@privatebanker My parents did say that they’d support my decision to go anywhere and are willing to pay for my finances.
If money wasn’t relevant, then why should I choose Michigan? What advantages over UT would I get going to Michigan?

20

Such a comparison isn’t very useful, though, because university systems don’t split the income from their endowments equally, nor does state funding go to all schools equally. In Michigan, for example, the Ann Arbor campus receives roughly 87% of state funding, whereas Dearborn and Flint receive only 6.5-7% each. UT Austin doesn’t dominate the other UT schools to the same extent, but more money is earmarked for UT Austin than for any other UT school.

The 2018 NACUBO endowment figures:

$30,886,018 - UT system
$11,901,760 - Michigan

The precise breakdown of funds from the UT endowment varies from year to year, but UT Austin receives a minimum of 45% of the UT profits from the Permanent University Fund (a hefty chunk of the UT endowment), and the actual percentage is usually higher. Even if UT Austin lays claim to a slightly smaller percentage of the overall UT endowment - say, 40% - it still has a very respectable $12.3 billion.

Michigan and UT Austin are pretty comparable in size, enrolling 46,700 and 51,800 students, respectively.