University of Michigan vs UMass Amherst

So somehow I got off the waiting list and was accepted into the University of Michigan. I am committed to UMass Amherst, in-state, and with a major in biology. I might do pre-med but idk. I did not get into the honors college at UMass. If both schools were the same price, I’d go to Michigan, but Michigan has a cost of attendance of $60,000 a year, and UMass would only be around $27,000 a year. My parents are telling me that the cost doesn’t matter and I shouldn’t think about it. I want to go to grad school though too, so I don’t see the point in spending more than I have to for undergrad. Do you think a degree from Michigan would be worth it? I like the atmosphere of both schools equally and the reason I would choose Michigan is mainly for the academics and to live somewhere out of Massachusetts.

UMass for less than half the price is the way to go.

It would be hard to justify any college that is $33K more a year, since you don’t even know if you’re going pre-med, and so may go into research, teaching, maybe grad school, you’re better off saving the money. If you wanted a job in silicon valley say or going to the b-school, maybe but if you’re undecided, staying with UMass is probably the best option, esp since you like the atmosphere there.

Yes, it’s hard to see how you would get more than double the value out of UMichigan, unless their undergrad bio program is so amazing that they can teach you to clone yourself…

If your parents can easily afford to cost difference, then Michigan is the obvious choice. But if your parents find it remotely challenging to pay for Michigan, UMass is a great option.

If your family is quite wealthy and you’re paying for this in cash (so no loans, no hit to retirement income), then I’d send you to Michigan. But if you’re talking about loans, it has to be UMass. If you want to spend some of your college years outside of Mass, you can - check out their National Student Exchange program, and their International Exchange program once you’re on campus. You can spend a year at another school. You can also do internships in other states.

What type of graduate school are you interested in? If a PhD program in biology is your goal, you are likely to win get teaching assistantships and research assistantships and can apply for NSF grants to cover it, so there may not be a reason to save money for that. If you want an MBA, different story, you may need savings. A degree from Michigan
may put you in a better place to get into the top Medical or Phd programs.

Evaluate how much savings your parents have for your education. If they are depending on future earned income, I might choose U Mass, if they have a big account all saved for your education, then you should consider Michigan carefully. None of us are completely safe in our careers, but if your parents are in very stable jobs,
it may also be safe to attend Michigan.

Do not be shy, this is the time to learn about finances.
Ask to see the savings account numbers, and if four years of OOS tuition is saved, then think about Michigan as a great gift, and opportunity to go out of state. Michigan is excellent in that it attracts a wide variety of students, offers very good premedical advising.

Also flights from Boston to Detroit are very easy and a bus will take you to Ann Arbor, may be easier to travel
to Ann Arbor than Amherst MA, depending on exactly where you live in MA, but will cost a little more to fly.

U Mass is still a top choice though as you can take
classes at Amherst College, Smith College etc, for a great challenge and exposure to small seminar style classes that you will not get at either Michigan or U Mass.

I don’t think Michigan depsite being a more selective school puts you in a better spot for medical school or even an mba. Grades mcats gmats recs and research drive those options. And. UMass actually has a great medical school in the system. Michigan is tops but UMass is darn good too. Hey the honors college there is harder to get into than Michigan as you see. So some top kids are at both. I love big ten sports and the alumni network of Michigan for business is much stronger. But an mba can even that out. Tough call. Best of luck.

If you like both equally, I would say UMass is the better option. You will have an overlap in similarities of the schools in terms of what they have to offer academically and socially. If you were looking at specific programs and/or extracurricular clubs that one has and the other doesn’t, then maybe consider one over the other.

You answered your own question.

“I like the atmosphere of both schools equally and the reason I would choose Michigan is mainly for the academics and to live somewhere out of Massachusetts.”

Also, being a Big10 division college, there is a ton of school pride at UofM that can’t be replicated at UMass.

^^^ one is 27k and the other is 60k with grad school in the picture. Not so cut and dry imho.

For biology at the undergrad level for a potential pre-med, it is ludicrous to pay OSS tuition at Michigan compared to UMass.

“For biology at the undergrad level for a potential pre-med, it is ludicrous to pay OSS tuition at Michigan compared to UMass.”

If that were the case harvardandberkeley, there would be no full pay OOS students at any public university in the nation, or full pay student period at any private university in the nation. It is quite common for families to opt for a more expensive college or university if it offers stronger academics, more opportunities and a better overall experience. If that means going into debt or eating into their life savings, I agree that it is ludicrous. But if a family has the means to easily afford to cost of attendance, I see nothing wrong with paying more.

I like UMich a lot. But for someone at your stage in life, I doubt you get “double the pleasure” in exchange for “double the treasure.” However, as someone remarked above, if your parents have money (earnings, cash savings), then given your preference for UMich, I would go there.

We were full pay for both kids, though that meant turning down $10K in NM award offered to the older one at a fine college (Carleton) who instead went to UChicago with a $750 token NM award. That was at a time when total costs of attendance were only about half of the costs today. UMich would have cost even less, given the amount he was offered, but we felt he would gain the most from Chicago and he wanted to attend college in a “major league city.” We were not rich, but we had saved the money.

How are you academically? You did not get into U Mass honors. U Mich may be more challenging academically. Are you up to that? For med school, grades really matter.

As others have said, if your parents can easily afford the extra money, U Mich has a great national reputation. If you decide not to go to med school, and want to leave Mass, U Mich may have a bit more prestige. But it is a lot of money. I would not do it if it involves more than minimal loans.

Amherst is a really nice area to be in. I would definitely save the money and go there.

I’m a Michigan (MBA) grad living in Mass. You need to look at the end game…because even though that money is doable for your family is it something that makes sense? From a reputation standpoint, Michigan is definitely superior. That said, if UMass can get you to the same next (post graduation) place then it is the better option.

There’s no obvious right answer. Plenty of Massachusetts residents choose Michigan despite the higher COA—just as many choose private schools despite the higher COA. And obviously many choose UMass Amherst, not least because it’s relatively affordable. The financial piece is something each family needs to decide based on their own finances.

Normally for a pre-med I’d say choose the cheaper option and the one where you’re likelier to get top grades, because undergraduate GPA counts very heavily in med school admissions, and med school costs an arm and a leg. Since you’re not sure you’ll be a pre-med, it’s more complicated. If you end up in a good Ph.D. program it’s likely to be fully funded, i.e., you’ll get a fellowship or a teaching or research assistantship that comes with a tuition waiver and a small stipend for living expenses. That eases the financial imperative to some extent.

There are some differences between the schools. Reputation, of course, but there are others. The caliber of your fellow students, for example. The 75th percentile SAT and ACT scores at UMass are about the same as the 25th percentile at Michigan. Obviously there’s some overlap, and you can find plenty of bright students at UMass, but on average the students in your classes and the people you interact with socially will be brighter and better students at Michigan. That cuts both ways. You might find Michigan more intellectually stimulating and growth-inducing (which to my mind is the principal value of a college education, though not everyone agrees). But it might also mean faster-moving classes (which can be a plus in terms of stimulation and growth, but a minus if you have trouble keeping up) and stiffer competition for top grades.

Racial and ethnic diversity is similar—UMass students are 65% white, Michigan 60%, with similar percentages of black and Hispanic/Latino students, but Michigan has more Asian students (14% v. 10% at UMass) and more international students (7% v. 5% at UMass). There’s a big difference in geographic diversity among U.S. resident students. UMass’ student body is 80% in-state, and most of the rest come from within roughly a 200 mile radius (other New England states, plus NY and NJ). Michigan is over 40% OOS, and this year’s entering class is around 50%. Even the in-state students at Michigan come from someplace other than what you’re familiar with, and the OOS students come from coast to coast. Top feeder states for Michigan typically are California, New York, Illinois, New Jersey, Ohio, Maryland, and Massachusetts, in that order, though Florida and Texas are also well represented. You might find the social interactions at Michigan more broadening—or not, depending on how and with whom you spend your time.

Michigan also has a better student-faculty ratio (15-1 v. 18-1 at UMass) and a better graduation rate (91% v. 76% at UMass). There’s more, but I’ll stop.

My daughter faced a similar choice. She had already taken quite a few classes at our local public flagship, the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, while still in HS, through a state program that allows advanced HS students to do so. She wasn’t terribly impressed with the caliber of her fellow students or the level of rigor and workload in the classes, but she applied for freshman admission anyway, as her absolute safety of last resort. But she also applied to Michigan on the thought that if she was going to end up at a big state school, Michigan would be qualitatively better. She was thrilled when she was accepted at Michigan, but she ended up going another route entirely, enrolling at a very good LAC in the Northeast where she thrived intellectually, academically, and socially. Our in-state flagship would have been much cheaper, but we could afford Michigan OOS and the private LAC, and to me it was money well spent because of the life-changing quality of the total experience. It was the right decision for us. YMMV.

I’d pick U. of Michigan. I live far away from Michigan, but it has a nationwide reputation, and having that name on a resume will give you credibility (as long as you don’t get bad grades that would harm your admissions prospects to grad school).

Ask yourself if you and your family would have spent that money to attend UofM in March. If yes and you can turn on a dime on your decision made in May, then perhaps take the offer. Everyone has pointed out the data point differences, but absolutely it comes down to if you and your family feel the extra money spent is “worth it.” No one, really no one, can ever tell you with certainty if the money spent will make a difference in your life trajectory or ultimate salary or med school outcomes. There is a presumption sometimes on these forums that the higher ranked school is the trump card when making decisions if cost is no object, but that is just one viewpoint.