I’ve recently been admitted to the WashU Olin School of Business and UMich LSA. I know that I want to study business and would request a transfer to Ross if I went to UMich.
My main concern is that I’m nervous about being denied a transfer to Ross. Any input would be appreciated!
Did you apply to Ross and get denied in this cycle? If so, you cannot apply again as an undergrad. If you did not apply to Ross as a HS senior, you can apply at the end of your freshman year for a cross-campus transfer, but admission is far from guaranteed. You cannot rely on it. Ross admits 100 cross-campus transfers per year.
That said, you need to examine WHY you want to study business. Is it because you want a career in “business”? Or is it because you would love to take the courses that are required in a business school, that you love the area of study? If it’s the former, you do not need a business degree to have a career in business. It’s not like a career in medicine or law, where you MUST go to medical or law school to have those careers. I know LSA grads who work alongside Ross grads in the EXACT same jobs.
Also available at UMich is a Ross Business minor. I believe it’s available to all students, even those who have been denied entrance to Ross.
https://michiganross.umich.edu/undergraduate/business-minor/admissions/how-to-apply
I was waitlisted to LSA initially, so I have the chance to re-apply to Ross. I want to study business because I enjoy it and don’t see myself enjoying studying something such as economics in the LSA school. If I were to go to UMich, what are the odds of a Ross admit? I’d imagine it changes yearly and I know you said it is no guarantee, but is it feasible or more of a reach? The main thing that draws me to UMich are the sports and social atmosphere.
Not all. You have to apply and get accepted.
Is there a price difference? From what I understand, WashU has an entrepreneurial program/institute that could be unique and helpful, if you’re motivated in that direction.
Can you clarify this? Did you apply to Ross this year? Are you saying that students admitted to LSA from the wait list who had applied to Ross are permitted to reapply? I’m not familiar with that policy. If so, is it because Ross did not have the opportunity to review your application?
As for your chances, there’s no way to tell. You’d pretty much have to get not much less than a 4.0 freshman year and write a killer essay. Are you familiar with the prerequisites? You’d have to take calculus and econ (unless you got a 5 on the AP calc AB test or a 4 on AP calc BC). Do you think you can ace those courses?
Of course, that’s why I gave the link to “How To Apply.”
But from my understanding, the process is not as rigorous as it was for Ross preferred admission as a freshman or as a inter-school transfer.
I contacted Ross to clarify and yes, they never had an opportunity to review my application, therefore I do have another shot at applying next year.
I think I could ace calc, but not so sure about economics. I’m currently in an IB econ course at my HS and don’t enjoy it, but would be willing to put in the work.
In your opinion, does the direct admit to WashU’s business school carry a significant enough advantage to justify it over potentially being stuck with LSA at Mich?
If you are sure that you want to study business I’d take the sure thing at Olin. Having a direct admit is huge IMO.
If you pick UM you should go in with a back-up major in LSA that you could be happy studying. From what I have seen with my kid’s friends it is difficult to transfer into Ross – I know a number people who were unable to make that internal transfer once they were at UM.
The only way I would take the risk at UMich is it was significantly cheaper. Like instate vs full price.
It’s only $10k cheaper per year
If you would consider it “stuck” at LSA, then you should not go. I don’t understand why you would feel that way. Literature, Science, and the Arts is the foundation of higher education. There’s so much to choose from and so much to learn to become an educated person. Success in “business” requires a broad perspective, curiosity about a lot of things, and an understanding of the context in which we live. By the way, philosophy majors are more likely than other graduates to become CEOs.
Ross inter-school transfer rate is a little more than 50%, with an average GPA of 3.7.
See this page for transfer academic requirements, and stats near the bottom. https://michiganross.umich.edu/undergraduate/bba/admissions/UM-applicants
I would lean to taking WashU’s offer, if the $10K extra cost per year is not a burden to your family.
Don’t underestimate the difficulty in achieving a 3.7 GPA at UMich. It ain’t easy. ?