My son was admitted to Michigan!
We got back from seeing Star Wars and my son read his email and found out he was admitted to UofM, LSA! We wants to be a microbiologist.
I'm thrilled, if he decides to go to Michigan he will be the 4th generation in our family to go there.
We're out of state (VA) so paying for this will be problematic, but he is applying for scholarships.
I suspect he would rather attend William and Mary or UVA, but hopefully he'll...
GO BLUE!
December 19th, 2015 at 3:31 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 3:34 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 3:34 PM ^
I used to say my older kids strived for mediocrity and HIT IT.
December 19th, 2015 at 4:11 PM ^
My 2 older sons are on some kind of 6 year plan at the local community college here. Both are bright, but not motivated like my youngest. I guess hearing his brothers get yelled at had a positive impact.
December 19th, 2015 at 4:39 PM ^
never had to endure dads rath because she watched him get it and it had a better effect on her than it did him.
December 19th, 2015 at 5:35 PM ^
They went to MSU or OSU?
December 19th, 2015 at 8:17 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 3:34 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 3:35 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 3:41 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 4:17 PM ^
with having him visit, attend a class and talk to an advisor. Thank you.
December 20th, 2015 at 8:52 AM ^
but they don't have to sell themselves. I recall reading Michigan is 5th in the country with # of kids who apply. They don't really want everyone who they accept to say yes. Also have a lot of kids on the waitlist who would love to go, so it's fine when others say No.
December 19th, 2015 at 3:48 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 3:52 PM ^
Congrats! I remember the thrill of my admission earlier this year. What a great tradition at Michigan your family has too!
December 19th, 2015 at 3:58 PM ^
Congrats! Don't worry about how to pay for it.....just get him there and the rest will fall into place. There are 1,000,000 scholarship programs that will help pay and if nothing else, Sallie Mae is always available. It won't be a decision he regrets, that's for sure.
GO BLUE!
December 19th, 2015 at 3:53 PM ^
Congrats! Hoping to be in your shoes in two years. For those of you who got in, or whose kids just got in, what should my son shoot for GPA and test score-wise? We're out of state, and he'd be applying to L,S & A.
December 19th, 2015 at 4:04 PM ^
ACT 31-33+. I believe that the essays and extracurriculars were pretty important. Michigan used to ignore freshman year - they don't anymore but apparently give it less weight than Soph and Junior year. My son's GPA was lower than refenced above in Freshman year; the light bulb had not gone on yet. FYI, We are out of state. College confidential and the admitted profile websites are helpful in this area with the caveat that the information from CC is not always reliable. Apparently, people lie on the internet.
December 19th, 2015 at 4:08 PM ^
Unless you have great ACT scores or valuable leadership skills/employment experience/ or other extracurriculars...the higher end of the that listed GPA is needed to be competitive with all time high application rates
December 19th, 2015 at 5:06 PM ^
the higher end of the that listed GPA is needed to be competitive with all time high application rates
This is not very accurate. I work with high school counselors and former admissions people. GPA is one of many factors. Furthermore, a 3.75 is an absolutely great number, depending on your high school, admittedly.
Counselors tell me that it boils down to 5 factors and usually they are given importance in this order:
1. Transcript (Note: GPA included, but yes they do look at trends and what types of classes taken more than just the number).
2. Essays
3. Teacher Recs
4. Extra/Co-curriculars (Specifically, leadership roles and not resume padders).
5. ACT/SAT
It is really a misnomer that all anyone's application boils down to is two numbers.
EDIT: To throw an anecdote in, a kid I know was just accepted with a 3.6 GPA and 31 composite ACT. According to some on here, those two numbers aren't good enough to be competitive. I think some people confuse "competitive" with "slam dunk." Those numbers, plus coming from a higly regarded HS, though, and good essays and recs certainly do the job. Again, those two numbers don't mean as much as people like to claim.
December 19th, 2015 at 4:09 PM ^
He had one bad grade freshman year, but this year, all A's so far, and an A- in social studies. I'm hoping this year cancels out the one bad one last year. Test scores TBD. We've heard, regarding the one bad grade, that improvement can trump the bad grade. Also, lots of family has gone to Michigan but who knows if that really helps. His extra curriculars are thin right now - he plays baseball and that's pretty much year round for him.
December 19th, 2015 at 4:25 PM ^
can be overcome with a rising GPA the rest of the way. I believe they like to see an upward trend. That worked for my son.
December 19th, 2015 at 4:30 PM ^
The app asked for information about whether a 'grandparent' had attended or not. Nothing about me or his great grandfather.
My son only had a 2nd degree black belt in a martial art, Life Scout in the Boy Scouts and some volunteer work at a thrift shop/local shelter for battered women for extra curriculars.
To bump up the GPA see if your son can take some AP classes. A lot of HSs (using a 4 point scale) is count an 'A' as a 5, 'B' as a 4, etc. My son's school requires the student take the AP test (and get a 3 on it) in order to get the extra point for the grade.
Good luck!
December 19th, 2015 at 4:50 PM ^
Wendy, from everyone I've talked to in "the business," a bad grade freshmen year (what is bad, by the way, a C?) among 2-3 years of A's will mean very little for a place like Michigan, assuming quality essays, teacher recs.
December 19th, 2015 at 10:24 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 5:52 PM ^
Having family legacy will be very important....it's not going to hurt, anyway.
December 19th, 2015 at 5:45 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 4:06 PM ^
That is truly awesome for him. I still have my admission letter to UM...one of the most cherished items I have.
If he goes to UM and truly wants to be a microbiologist, the first thing he will want to do is get in a lab. I recommend some of the many basic scientist in the MCDB department: Dr. James Bardwell, Dr. Matthew Chapman, and/or Dr. Lyle Simmons. All will give him the necessary research experience he will need...
December 19th, 2015 at 4:06 PM ^
Congratulations!
On the tuition front, my kids are going to college in Germany, where it is free, and they can pound sand if they don't like it.
December 19th, 2015 at 4:59 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 5:23 PM ^
If I recall correctly, he lives in Germany.
December 19th, 2015 at 5:46 PM ^
It will hold a lot of water for grad programs in the US.....which are practically madatory now in order to get a decent job.
December 19th, 2015 at 6:30 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 4:15 PM ^
Can he run pick 'n roll?
December 19th, 2015 at 4:32 PM ^
nasty round house kick. :-)
December 19th, 2015 at 4:47 PM ^
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December 19th, 2015 at 4:24 PM ^
The day I received my acceptance letter remains one of my happiest moments in life (right behind graduating from U-M)
December 19th, 2015 at 4:25 PM ^
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December 19th, 2015 at 4:29 PM ^
And it would be nice to start a pipeline to Virginia, which reminds me of a bad joke about pipelines in Virginia.
December 19th, 2015 at 4:45 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 5:03 PM ^
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December 19th, 2015 at 5:03 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 5:12 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 5:27 PM ^
Thanks. If he does choose to stay in state, I'll be pushing Michigan for grad school.
December 19th, 2015 at 5:07 PM ^
U of M out of state tuition is more than Princeton's.
December 19th, 2015 at 5:07 PM ^
December 20th, 2015 at 2:32 AM ^
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December 19th, 2015 at 5:16 PM ^
My wife is Welsh as is my mother-in-law. My wife told her mother that our son was accepted by Michigan. There wasn't much of a reaction so my wife reminded her I went to Michigan. So my mother-in-law asks, "is that in Pittsburgh?"
At least my mother-in-law knows I grew up in Pittsburgh.
December 19th, 2015 at 5:23 PM ^
December 19th, 2015 at 5:59 PM ^
people are actually advocating for U Va or Wm and Mary over UM? You must not have so fully enjoyed your 4 years at Michigan as I did. That experience is priceless. There are many possible scholarships available- Plus Harbaugh! I hope he goes for it!
December 19th, 2015 at 6:00 PM ^
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