I was recently admitted to both U Michigan and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute for Chemical Engineering. I received near-full rides to both (I’d pay $1K/year for RPI, $1/yr for Umich…yes, $1). I have visited both and, while they are drastically different in terms of size/campus environment/etc, I was able to picture myself at both. I’m both super quirky/nerdy and social (e.g. I see myself rushing no matter where I go). I am leaning towards U of M right now, but want others’ input before I commit.
Michigna seems to have a better ChemE program, and a better Engineering Program overall. Also, Michigan is more prestigious, offers a more balanced male-female ratio, and a more vibrant social life. Furthermore, Ann Arbor >>> Troy. On top of that, Michigan is cheaper for you. At Michigan, basically all academic programs are top notch, ranked in the top 10 or 20 in their respective fields - so it is not only the engineers who are top notch. Unless there is a REALLY compelling reason to go with RPI, I would go with Michigan. $1/year is such a great deal!
ChemE at UMich has the lowest national ranking among all engineering programs in CoE, and yet, it is well within the top 15 (11 or 12 this year I believe). In case you change your mind and would like to switch to another engineering program, it would be even stronger in ranking. After all, ranking is not that important. My D is ChemE major and she really enjoy the program as well as EC activities in CoE like building a wind turbine for a local public school.
It does not hurt having Dow Chemical (top 3 Chemical company in the World) headquarters a mere 100 miles from campus. BASF, the largest Chemical company on earth, also has a large office in Southfield, and they too recruit heavily on campus, as does Minneapolis-based 3M. The large petro companies also recruit heavily on campus.
RPI appears in a USA Today article, “The top 10 engineering colleges in the US,” should this be of interest to you. RPI is also a “smart” college (36th nationally), as is Michigan (42nd): “The 50 Smartest Colleges,” Business Insider.