University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Top Questions

My school is a large university with students in many areas of study. In that way, the school is diverse. However, the university is quite limited in its racial diversity. Though the international students are very present on campus, the school's overall population is made up of over 60{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} white students. This was disappointing to me, since I expected more visual diversity from such a large campus. Thankfully, student organizations around campus do a great job of throwing events to raise cultural awareness and education of peoples from around the world.

The worst part of my school is how many students on campus will continually boast about how superior the University of Micigan is in comparison to other schools. While I do believe we have some highly ranked programs, I don't agree with the students who find the need to shove it in front of other people's faces all the time. Having school pride is great; but that does not mean we need to belittle other students and assert our so called "superiority" over them. Other people should be allowed to love their school without another group's influence.

My first year of college was difficult. I started the year bumpy. Trying to understand who I was made things so complicated. I did not want the choices of the past to affect my future. It’s strange grasping the idea that the person I was before is not the person I am now. Michigan is a phenomenal school with amazing people and a diverse culture. However, it my be the most competitive and outrageously difficult thing I have ever experienced. There is so much going on at once and without money things can be difficult.

It's a very large school, and sometimes I get caught up in my own little bubble of friends. Sometimes I wish it was easier to get to know more people across campus from different backgrounds and cultures.

For me, the worst thing about coming to school here is being so far from home. This doesn't apply to everyone, obviously, but being a 6 hour flight from home all the time after spending my entire life there was a big change, and usually not a fun one for me. I wished many times that I could go visit home on weekends like some of the more local students here. I still firmly believe I made the right choice of school, but being so far from home is certainly not fun.

Everything is up to you. This is a wonderful opportunity, but it is also a problem with attending such a large school. Michigan has a niche for everyone, academically, extra-curricularly, and socially, but, to find your niche, you must actively pursue your interests and likeminded individuals. Academically, there are many options you must explore and yet quickly choose a direction. There are as many extra-curricular options as academic, which can bolster one's experience. Finally, finding a social group is difficult, but being actively involed in the aforementioned extra-curriculars can lead to a strong group of friends.

The cost to attend. It's not as if the tuition is extremely high, but coupled with the high off campus housing rates, attending U of M definitely requires a significant amount of money.

The University of Michigan is a wonderful school with an amazing campus and amazing students to match. At the same time, those can be the worst things about the school. With so many students on a big campus it’s easy to feel like another face. This fact being, it’s important for anyone at the University of Michigan to find their place, their community, where they can avoid a sense of mediocrity. This can make a big school a little less intimidating by helping us recognize that we’re all unique and not just another face in the crowd.

The worst thing about Michigan was the lack of pushing to use the resources. If you knew what was available, it was easy to take advantage, but if you didn't actively seek them out they would be easy to miss. I wish there was more mentoring or reminders about what resources are available so they would be more accessible to those who needed them.

The worst thing about my school is that it is really hard to get involved in extracrurricular activities. It is harder to find a place to fit in, which is definately overwhelming as a freshman, but is earier to adjust to over time.