<p>What is it "specialized" in? Like if U of Chicago is economics and JHU is med etc... </p>
<p>What is Michigan's strengths?
Weaknesses?</p>
<p>everything-most departments are ranked in the top 10, the rest are in the top 25
undergrad engineering is usually in the top 5
undergrad business (Ross) is ranked 3
all grad schools are ranked in the top 10
athletically we usually finish in the top 5 in the director's cup competition (for the best athletic program in the country), though it looks like we will be edged out by stanford once again</p>
<p>Anyway, Michigan is the perfect university</p>
<p>indeed it is :)</p>
<p>There is no absolute strength. You sort of have to give it a strength based on what you see it as. Some people see engineering as its strength and want to attend for that. For others (like me), I see that its strength lies in business. This pretty much means it has many strengths, and YOU can decide which one it will be for you.</p>
<p>Intotherain, Chicago's Economics program is a standout, which is why Chicago is know for it. Michigan is more like Cornell or Cal. It does not have standouts, but most departments are ranked in the top 10...many of them in the top 5. There really isn't a weak department at Michigan. The closest thing to a weak department is Chemistry, an even that is ranked among the top 25 in the nation!</p>
<p>And Michigan really has no real weaknesses. It is on the large size, although it handles its size remarkably well. But you do have to take some initiative. There is a little bit more competition, but again, it is not extreme. The weather is obviously quite cold (not colder than Chicago, Boston or NYC winters though), so if you do not like cold winters, that could be a problem. Finally, Michigan will not impress most of your high school buddies. It can be annoying sometimes because as a student, you will know that graduate school adcoms and corporate recruiters will respect your degree as much as any, but your typical students around the nation usually do not know much about Michigan. In that regard, Michigan is very similar to Chicago.</p>
<p>Michigan doesn't really have any weaknesses...it's probably the most well-rounded university in America. -_-</p>
<p>"Finally, Michigan will not impress most of your high school buddies."</p>
<p>As an out-of-stater, I disagree with this (perhaps because Tennessee has a weak selection of top-knotch schools).</p>
<p>Right on, asdfTT123! =)</p>
<p>Don't get me wrong Matthew, I was merely referring to your typical high school student. Those in the know really approach Michigan as the top 10 or top 15 university that it is. When Michigan students start their job search, recruiters are extremely receptive. So are graduate school adcoms. As ASDFTT123 said, Michigan truly is the "most well-reounded university in America". There is no exaggeration there. It really is. Here is some food for thought. Last year, out of 5,900 graduating seniors, about 1,500 of them went on to Medical School or Law School, another 1,000 went to other sorts of graduate schools and 3,000+ found full time jobs. That's an amazing placement ratio.</p>
<p>Who cares what your "high school buddies" think?!?!?!?! They are not controlling the rest of your future. They are not going to hire you or sit on the admissions committees of law and med schools (well maybe eventually they could), but the point is you should not choose a college because the name sounds impressive. Also, I think Michigan is one of the most respected names in collegiate academics and definitely the most feared in athletics (sure stanford keeps winning the director's cup-but who can really be afraid of the cardinal-it's a F*****g color!"</p>