A Deep Dive Into the University of Michigan

My name is Genevive, and I’m so proud to say I will be attending the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business double majoring in Business Administration and Biopsychology, Cognition, and Neuroscience!  For some more information about me, I am a native New Yorker and attend a very competitive high school. Throughout high school, I maintained a 93 GPA, took 6 AP exams, had 1520 on the SAT, and involved myself in numerous business and social justice-related extracurriculars. I got accepted into UMich LSA Early Action and Ross during the first round of decisions. While I encourage everyone to do their research and tour the campus, I want to share my insights on the school as an incoming first-year!

I toured the school in mid-April and fell in love. Ann Arbor is a very walkable quaint-feeling college town that feels very safe. There are plenty of different options for affordable food, a must for someone like me who loves to eat. However, the weather is incredibly unpredictable; my friend who went the week earlier said she went in shorts, and it snowed when I visited. The Ross campus’s modern design is very different compared to the rest of the campus. Buildings like the Law Library feature Gothic architecture with stained glass windows and intricate ceiling designs, while Ross has glass ceilings, high walls, and bright open working spaces. The campus also contains a gym and Starbucks, which speaks to the caffeine-reliant gym rat within me. 

Admission to Ross is not a single application; on top of the supplemental essays for UMich, Ross applicants must submit a business portfolio. This year, I had to write a business proposal to solve a social issue in my community, and I focused on combating hunger within the Asian community. Admitted students must first be admitted into LSA to be considered for Ross. EA applicants find out their decisions for UMich in early January, and Ross students find out in different rounds spaced roughly a month apart. You need 120 credits to graduate; from what I know, the Ross curriculum is well-structured. Ross follows LSA’s AP credit equivalents; while AP exams can get you credits, they do not help you bypass certain classes. To determine what kind of classes they will take, Ross students take three placement exams; Math, UWrite, and Language. You should take these exams at least a week before your academic advisement. On the Math placement exam, you get 50 minutes for 45 multiple-choice pre-calc questions. The UWrite test is more of an overview of what English classes are available to first-year students and a record of your preferences. The Language placement test comes in two parts: a written part (done online) and a 15-minute live interview with reading comprehension. The scores and results of these exams will be used in academic advisement to determine what classes you are eligible to take. These one-on-one meetings occur throughout May and June with a randomly assigned advisor to work out your schedule for the fall and winter semesters. 

Moving onto financial aid, everyone’s favorite topic. UMich is a state school, which notoriously does not give much aid to out-of-state students. While I didn’t receive my ideal amount of aid for my first offer, I was able to visit the financial aid office after I committed and learned how to appeal my offer. The financial aid office workers were friendly, easy to communicate with, and prompt, and the appeal process is also very straightforward. UMich also offers numerous very competitive scholarships for those who need them on their financial aid page. 

In terms of its demographics, UMich is a PWI, but this doesn’t mean that everyone there is white. There are so many people that there are endless opportunities to find your people, whether that applies in the cultural or personal sense. Something that stuck with me when I toured was the number of students who waved at or made light conversation with my tour guide as she passed. Those small interactions just showed me how well-integrated everyone is into the community. When I found out that I got in at a local makeup store, a current UMich student overheard me, congratulated me, and told me how much she loved it there. It’s a school people are so proud to attend, and the Wolverine spirit is so strong wherever you go. 

I hope that this gives you some insight into UMich and that anyone applying to college decides to GO BLUE!