Call and they should be able to give you the numbers. My senior son is going. There is a slight chance football might happen and students can go. He’s not missing that. So far he is 50/50% with classes but that could change. He is either stuck in his room on campus but can be around other motivated kids or he is stuck in his bedroom with us around…LOL…
Stanley2020, we are in similar positions. My son is an incoming freshman and has been assigned to live in West Quad. We are also from NJ and have decided to send our son to Ann Arbor. In addition, we know about 9 other incoming freshmen from out-of-state, and every one of them will be living on campus in Ann Arbor this fall. Not one has decided to either take classes from home or take a gap year.
While it makes me slightly ill to think about how much money I am paying for my son to take all of his classes online, there is a lot more to the college experience than classes. He will never have another chance to experience what it is like to be in a freshman dorm with all of his other incoming classmates. It is likely that at least some of the students he meets in the dorm will be become his friends for the remainder of his tenure at UM. In fact, two of the guys I met in the dorm during my first week of college are still my close friends 30+ years later.
Granted, life in a freshman dorm is going to be far from normal this year. It is inevitable that things will be much more restricted and possibly less fun. But despite that, I still think my son will grow far more as a person by living in the dorm than he ever would living at home. He was ready for college 9 months ago. It is time for him to start spreading his wings and begin to feel what it is like to be independent. To keep him home would only delay his growth and frustrate him thinking about what he is missing in Ann Arbor.
Everyone has to make the decision that is best for their child and their family. But, for us, the decision is clear.
He is going to love West Quad. My son was there as a freshman. It’s like a hotel. Very nice. There are plenty of extra rooms and spaces to study and move around also. He met a few of the football players that just got drafted to the NFL in the elevator…
Go Blue…
He is super excited, and I’m excited for him.
@Stanley2020 , we are in a similar situation as well. My son’s classes are also all online. He reconciled to stay at home and go there in the Winter.
But now, however, he anecdotally finds that a large number of students seem to in fact be going to the dorms.
Were you (or anybody else) able to find out what proportion of freshmen are actually going to the dorms vs. taking classes online? That would be great information to make a final decision. Thanks!
The last notices we got as parents same as the students), kinda made the point 70 % of credits will be remote and no major is impacted by staying home. Saying that, I don’t know of any kid from Chicago area not going (I am sure some aren’t going). The school should have a clue by the deposits for housing… Just call and ask… Subtract international students if they can’t get into the states.
As they say in West Quad, “West Quad is the best Quad.” 
It’s a beautiful building from an architectural standpoint with AC. My junior kid is going back this week. All her classes are of the larger popular variety and switched to online. She plans to go to the UGLI or the Law library to “kinda sorta if you squint real hard” simulate in-person classes.
My son is an entering OOS (PA) freshman and we have struggled with the decision to send him to Ann Arbor for the fall. At this point all of his classes are online including 2 labs (Physics and intro Engineering-he is EE) and he has decided to take classes remotely from home for the fall 2020 semester. It is heartbreaking for me BUT we allowed him to make the decision and he is surprisingly ok with it. Besides not being able to have a full college experience on campus plus the risk of getting sick, he thinks a surge in cases is inevitable and he will be sent home early anyway. We can get out of our housing contract by August 14. While dormitory housing for the spring is not guaranteed, there is a deadline to apply for it. My older son is a senior at University of Pittsburgh (MechE) and he is returning to the Pittsburgh campus next week. His situation is different; he lives in an off-campus house with 5 others, all who have been together for most of the past three years. He is not dependent on the university dining system and will have a car. I empathize with everyone struggling with this decision.
It’s a tough decision. The problem is even with Ann Arbors huge stock of apartments etc many are sold out. You can always find a place somewhere. Some of the co-op housing still has availability and are normally full by now https://icc.coop/.
Pro Hint : engineering and physics are really hard at Michigan. Some are weed out classes with some math classes like Calc 2. Make sure he is in the best environment to be able to study. I am sure he knows this from his brother. My senior son in Industrial engineering is going back the 27th.
Thanks for the advice. Well taken. Our biggest concern now is to make sure we can get him on-campus housing for Winter term which UM says is not guaranteed if he cancels his housing contract. Again, difficult decisions all around but we are healthy, he is happy with his decision and is ready to deal with the challenges that are ahead. Go Blue!
OOS incoming freshman in Ross. Living in South Quad and going. There are six kids from my HS going to A2 and all are going, none have taken a gap year or decided to stay home and take on-line classes from here.
Congrats to everyone on this thread! Make the most of these 4 years despite all the setbacks and frustrations, you’re going to do great!