Is Michigan weak in any way? - Page 26

rfk · 06-07-2008, 01:52 PM

I "only" read the first 10 pages but a couple points:

1) The rankings in the OP are based heavily on graduate rankings. Anthropology is #1; does a Michigan BA in Anthropology get you further than a HYPS etc and Anthropology? Doubtful. More important than undergraduate 'major' rankings like that is the undergraduate reputation of the University. Those rankings then are misleading.

2) U of M is owned by the State. It doesn't matter if they reduce State funding to 0%. It is property of the State of Michigan and can't go private.

Alexandre · 06-07-2008, 02:11 PM

rfk, whether attending a top ranked department gets you further than another, lesser ranked department doesn't matter. What matters is that you are in a top ranked department where you are taught by some of the best professors and have access to groundbreaking research in world-class facilities.

I am not sure whether or not Michigan, or any other public university, can go private. I would assume that if the stste can no longer support the needs of the institution, there are steps the university can take to switch. However, I hope Michigan remains public. It is a part of its identity. At the same time, I don't think Michigan should maintain a 65% in-state representation. 25%-30% is sufficient if you ask me. And since at this stage, Michigan is doing the state a favor by allowing it to be associated to such a great university, the state should accept its place.

Weasel8488 · 06-07-2008, 03:27 PM

I think that if Michigan took Alexandre's suggestion, you would see the relative prestige of attending it for undergrad rise. Michigan has an amazing faculty and some incredible students, but due in large part to its heavy in state representation, the quality of its undergraduate student body has potential to improve.

mkhushani · 06-16-2008, 03:10 PM

What about comp science engineering??
UIUC better(its no. 5 in USNWR) or Umich(no.7)

Alexandre · 06-16-2008, 10:13 PM

Computer Science and Computer Engineering aren't the same.

In Computer Engineering, Michigan and Illinois are both excellent. There is no difference between #5 and #7.

In Computer Science, Illinois is slightly better than Michigan, but the difference is negligible.

tomslawsky · 06-19-2008, 06:11 PM

"I'm working with my friends at MSU and UM to defeat Ward Connerly and MCRI and maintain Affirmative Action throughout the state. "

How sanctimonious of you. You know better than the majority of voters in Michigan AND you know better than the authors of the 14th amendment of the US constitution.

tomslawsky · 06-19-2008, 06:13 PM

"many Asians support the concept of Affirmative Action"

Gow ambiguous. Can you quantify the number of Asians supporting AA and put it in a percent for us, please?

If there are 10 million marbles and 100,000 of them are red, I can still claim there are "many" red marbles.

Quincy4 · 06-19-2008, 10:42 PM

Going private would be a disaster for U-M. It's unique because it is a superior public university and a large one. But a 40,000+ student private school? I don't think so, nor would I expect it would shrink as it is built to handle the size it is... U-M folks need to get the go-private fantasy out of their heads.

CCRunner123 · 06-21-2008, 03:54 AM

NYU has around 30k students and it's private. Same with USC. So I don't think a 40k student private school would be such a ridiculous idea.

Alexandre · 06-21-2008, 08:19 AM

Actually CCRunner, NYU has 41,000 students. And USC has 35,000 students. Those two schools combined have an endowment of $5.9 billion. Michigan's endowment is $7.1 billion. But being private with 25,000+ is not unusual. Boston University (27,000) and Columbia University (25,000). If Michigan wanted to be private, it could certainly manage.

However, I don't think it would be in its best interest to do so. Unless the state steps out of line and starts dictating to the University, there is no reason it should seek to turn private. But I certainly think the University can do more in terms of the way it structures the makeup of its undergraduate population. 65% in-state is way too much. 25% is far more reasonable. I have often said that Michigan would run optimally if it had 15,000-16,000 undergrads, 65%-75% of which should be out of staters and international. 26,000 undergrads is way too much.

And any talk of this top 10% rule should be dismissed immediately. I am not sure where the state comes off thinking it has any sort of leverage over UM. A state as impoverished and backwards as Michigan should get on its knees and thank the Gods (i.e., the University of Michigan) that it has a university of UM's calibre within its borders.

rjkofnovi · 06-21-2008, 06:57 PM

Alexandre. With all due respect, you are not a resident of Michigan nor have you ever been. This school was created by the state to give the common man an uncommon education. To say Michigan is "impoverished and backwards" is highly insulting to us residents who've lived here all of our lives. I could easily say that most middle eastern countries are impoverished and backwards, and be more accurate with my comments. You, as a resident of one of those countries, should get down on your knees and thank the gods that oil was discovered in vast quantities where you came from. Otherwise i doubt very much you would be a super moderator on these boards. Michigan is going through a tough time, we don't need to be reminded of that by someone who came to our state and took advantage of one of america's great institutions of learning. I hate to say it Alexandre, but it's people like you who have disparaged this state around the world who are part of our problem. Furthermore, if you think Michigan is so backwards, then i have to question how much of this world or Michigan for that matter you have seen? I can understand your selfish reasons why Michigan should lower it's instate numbers, I just can't accept the other comments without making some of my own.

Alexandre · 06-21-2008, 10:04 PM

I admire your loyalty to your home state Novi, and I sincerely appologize for my insulting comment...it was uncalled for. I believe that the state isn't providing nearly enough financial assistance to the University to make any sort of demand or have any lofty expectations, but I was out of order in making such a sweeping and unjustified statement. As for the Middle East, it is, I am sad to say, impoverished and backward in most corners.

rjkofnovi · 06-21-2008, 10:20 PM

Apology accepted Alexandre. I knew you were better than that, and you confirmed it. :-)

CCRunner123 · 06-22-2008, 02:11 AM

I don't know where I got the idea that NYU has 30,000 students. I probably just made it up haha.

hoedown · 06-23-2008, 09:00 AM

Quote:

I don't know where I got the idea that NYU has 30,000 students. I probably just made it up haha.

It's a proud college confidential tradition: make stuff up when you don't really know.

As for the top 10% idea, another thing U-M is concerned about are the plans they're floating for a Colorado-style voucher system. No thanks.