<p>OK looks like I will need to reassess my thinking. Looks like UNC is probably not too strong if I want to do nuclear engineering. I will need to wait for the latest USNews rankings when they come out in September.</p>
<p>Oh good heavens…what’s with this pre-occupation with USNews…</p>
<p>What would you do if it says School A is #20 this year, but slips to #25 your junior year…change schools???</p>
<p>Again, there are probably over 100 good engineering schools in this country…worrying about which is #20 or #30 is just silly…really silly.</p>
<p>What is your budget? what are your stats?</p>
<p>@mom2collegekids money is not an issue for me, my stats are 3.8 unweighted, will be taking numerous AP classes senior year. I’ve already taken the SAT and scored 2140 (780 math) which I am content with. I’m involved with lots of science clubs at school and ran track in my first two years. I’m expecting to have stellar teacher recommendations as well. I’ve considered schools like CMU but I think those types of schools will not have the atmosphere of schools like Michigan and UNC. I’m not obsessed with USNews but it’s widely accepted to be the ‘official’ college ranking, which is why I’m concerned in picking Michigan over UNC because it has been trending lower lately. My school uses this nice software package that graphs the ranking history, and you can see Michigan going from 8 or 9 a long time ago to about 29 or 30. I know for a fact that there is a direct correlation between quality of student and USNews ranking, so I am worried that over time a Michigan degree will lose some of its luster compared to UNC (which is actually gaining in reputation). Yes I understand now from the above posts that Michigan is slightly stronger in engineering, but there are many things I need to ponder now in considering which school to go.</p>
<p>“Yes I understand now from the above posts that Michigan is slightly stronger in engineering, but there are many things I need to ponder now in considering which school to go.”</p>
<p>Slightly stronger? You really have a lot to learn. Please go to UNC. You are just too smart to attend Michigan.</p>
<p>“I’m not obsessed with USNews but it’s widely accepted to be the ‘official’ college ranking, which is why I’m concerned in picking Michigan over UNC because it has been trending lower lately.”</p>
<p>Sounds like an obsession to me.</p>
<p>“My school uses this nice software package that graphs the ranking history, and you can see Michigan going from 8 or 9 a long time ago to about 29 or 30.”</p>
<p>Wow, I’m really impressed. It sounds like a very sophisticated program. No wonder your counselors are so knowledgeable about quality of The University of Michigan. They have a graph to look at!</p>
<p>Perhaps the OP can google the methodology behind how the US News rankings are determined. </p>
<p>It’s quite enlightening.</p>
<p>Oh gosh. OP, you can’t use a graph to quantify a schools strength or slipping strength. The reason that U of M was #8 or 9 long ago is because back then, the only source for the rankings was Peer Assessment scores (what other professors/academia thought of the University). Over the years, that score for U of M has not changed much, if at all. They just added things to the ranking of the years, which tended to favor private schools over publics. You can argue all day about whether or not those are accurate measures of a schools caliber or not.</p>
<p>There are a lot of flaws in your arguments, but you should know that internationally U of M’s reputation is much greater than UNC. Since you like rankings so much, here’s some international ones that gives some insight into international standings:</p>
<p>[Top</a> 200 - The Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2010-2011](<a href=“http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2010-2011/top-200.html]Top”>World University Rankings 2010-11 | Times Higher Education (THE))</p>
<p>[Top</a> Universities by Reputation 2011](<a href=“http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2010-2011/reputation-rankings.html]Top”>http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2010-2011/reputation-rankings.html)</p>
<p>Also, in engineering, U of M is not slightly better than UNC, but vastly better. You just have infinitely more resources at U of M than at UNC for engineering, and the job prospects for engineering from U of M is much better than from UNC (all top companies come to U of M, while UNC doesn’t have an actual engineering department).</p>
<p>You are always welcome to believe whatever you wish and do whatever you wish, if you go to UNC for engineering, four years from now don’t say that we told you so (this is everyone on this thread, not just me).</p>
<p>And this by no way means you won’t be successful going to UNC, just that you won’t have nearly as many opportunities in the engineering field.</p>
<p>“I love UNC, but UMich should be your first choice if you get in to both”</p>
<p>OP should choose for himself. I think a lot of posters in this thread need to stop chastising the OP for believing UNC is more renowned. Maybe some of his reasoning is flawed with regards to engineering ranking. But I can attest that while I went to high school in MD, UNC along wih UVa was definitely more highly regarded than UMich. This was likely due to location and selectivity with out of state students. When some of the best students in your high school don’t get into UVa or UNC but they do get into UMich, you start to derive your own conclusions about what is “better”. It’s superficial but to a lot of high schoolers, selectivity = exclusivity = quality. Either way, you will get a good education at either. More importantly, nuclear engineering really requires a master’s degree (I know firsthand because my professor and I used to help with nuclear engineering consulting on the side while I was in school). Therefore, you will not be disadvantaged in the least by going to UNC as the fundamentals of math and probability are what you really need (graduate schools respect both schools- your performance will dictate your changes at grad school more.). The advanced specifics you will learn will most likely be required at a graduate program.</p>
<p>“Either way, you will get a good education at either. More importantly, nuclear engineering really requires a master’s degree (I know firsthand because my professor and I used to help with nuclear engineering consulting on the side while I was in school). Therefore, you will not be disadvantaged in the least by going to UNC as the fundamentals of math and probability are what you really need (graduate schools respect both schools- your performance will dictate your changes at grad school more.). The advanced specifics you will learn will most likely be required at a graduate program.”</p>
<p>My sister in law has a bachelor’s degree from Michigan in nuclear engineering. She now has a high level job with a power company in Illinois. So much for your theory that a masters degree was needed. However I suppose if she did attend a school like UNC, it absolutely would have been required.</p>
<p>blah, UNC and UVa are not more selective than Michigan, they simply accept a lower precentage of applicants. In fact, I am not sure that UVa has a much lower acceptance rate than Michigan for OOS applicants. Either way, admissions standards are roughly identical for all three.</p>
<p>This said, I agree that in the Mid-Atlantic region, UVa and UNC will have a stronger reputation than Michigan, as well they should. They are excellent universities and the Mid Atlantic is their backyard.</p>
<p>However, I cannot agree with your assessment on Engineering. Even if Nuclear engineering did indeed require a graduate degree, attending Michigan would likely better position the OP for getting into a good Nuke graduate program. In fact, Michigan gives its undergrads the option to complete their Master’s degree in one year should they qualify (3.5+ GPA usually guarantees admission). Graduating with a MS in Nuclear Engineering from the #1 program in the nation in 5 years certainly has its advantages.</p>
<p>Furthermore, although I agree that the difference between the #8 and #30 Mathematics department is not significant as far as undergrads are concerned, for those who are very serious about Mathematics, Michigan’sw Sequence is considered one of the most rigorous and respected in the nation.</p>
<p>Michigan is stronger in certain areas - and engineering is one of them (business and computer science are two others). For all other majors they are generally very similar in strength. Personally (I just love the UNC “vibe”) I would choose UNC for anything except those areas.</p>
<p>Michigan has no academic weaknesses in their programs. I’m sorry, but the same cannot be said for UNC. Whatever the OP wants to major in at U-M, he/she can be assured that graduate schools and employers will respect the degree. As for the “vibe” in Ann Arbor, I can assure you that those who attend Michigan on the whole feel just as passionately about their school as those students who go to UNC.</p>
<p>You really want to argue this out, rjkofnovi? You ■■■■■ on every Michigan related threads with useless rants. Most of your posts on this thread contribute nothing of value but merely serve to insult the OP. Get a life. Wowerz, your example of 1 is real definitive. More so than my contacts with 15 leading nuclear companies?</p>
<p>The licensing boards are moving towards requiring a Master’s degree for obtaining a PE. And this is immediate for all of civil/mechanical engineering/nuclear (nuclear is also already heavily civil and electrical oriented anyways. Again OP, depends on which side of nuclear you want to be on.).</p>
<p>All you michigan trolls can ■■■■■ on. Nobody else is drinking the coolaid.</p>
<p>“Michigan has no academic weaknesses in their programs”</p>
<p>Really? Must be one amazing university. Let me hear you guys remind me Michigan is a peer of the ivies another 10 times.</p>
<p>“You really want to argue this out, rjkofnovi? You ■■■■■ on every Michigan related threads with useless rants. Most of your posts on this thread contribute nothing of value but merely serve to insult the OP. Get a life.”</p>
<p>When false and misleading information about The University of Michigan is put on display here at CC, I will comment on it. If you don’t like it, you are free to put me on ignore.</p>
<p>lol…false to you maybe.</p>
<p>“Michigan has no academic weaknesses in their programs”</p>
<p>“Must be one amazing university.”</p>
<p>…finally you are catching on.</p>
<p>I don’t know if I have a big enough knife to cut through all that you say yet.</p>
<p>Not to worry, I already did that for you…and pasted it too. :-)</p>