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University of Michigan recommendations

Angelo's is a must go to place. Amazing breakfasts and on gameday a line around the building.
 
Yeah on a game weekend AA will be pretty overrun with people. It's got a small-town feel (to me anyway) but absorbs thousands more people on a FB Saturday. If you're making a quick trip just to get a feel for the place, I'd pick at most two/three top restaurants/attractions and then just wander around. You'll get discouraged by the long lines and wait times if you try to do too much. The other option is to visit on a non-home game weekend or in the spring/summer. You can get a sense of what it's like to live there without having to navigate a game day crowd.

Also, MichDeac should weigh in on this thread.
 
inspectah_ said:
I remember going out to dinner in AA one January night with my future wife about twenty years ago. When we left the restaurant and got in the car it was minus-nineteen degrees.
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So an actually cold day
 
The marching band practices in the Big House the night before the game (at least they did last year), open to the public. Cool way to see the stadium, and the band. Go Blue!
 
DeacMan said:
Take this for what it is worth. We sent our kids to one of the well known private schools here in our metro who sell families on college prep and in depth college counseling. Over the last several years putting two kids through admissions we’ve gotten more than an earful about how many of the high flying universities actively court a ton of kids with loads of stuff bc they want to get their application numbers to be as inflated and then they will turn to their yield on admitted students. IOW they want to look as selective as possible and yield a high percent on the kids they admit. So pump up the app numbers is step one in that process.

The University of Chicago is one example of a school that does this to the extreme. Northeastern is another school that really plays this game hard. Our son was a good, not great, student with good, not great, test scores. He received multiple packets from the University of Chicago and a couple of more elite academic institutions out East imploring him to apply. When you looked at the math he had almost zero chance of being accepted.

Now your kid sounds like he is imminently qualified for all these schools sending him stuff. But as the head of admissions told parents at our high school over and over, the college admissions process is to a significant extent for many schools about the college manipulating their own math for their own ends. It plays into the ratings game the schools feel like they have to play.

Among schools we were told that were less inclined to play that game are BC, Notre Dame (big school to admit legacies) and Wake. They are known to take a much more what you see is what you get approach.
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Lordy yes... My son (#3) hates school. Has about an 80 average with a number of C's and D's... he is probably smarter than #1 below and scored in the 30s on his ACT. Has had billions of letters from schools that would never look at him after seeing his transcript. Applying would be a waste of time. I've finally talked him into trying a smaller school in Tennessee or Alabama. But he would just be a competitive number if he applied to a tough place.

My oldest daughter (#1) is a senior at Wake and has had a blast. I've greatly enjoyed seeing her march in the band at a couple of games each year! The recruitment process at Wake was smooth and low key. We looked at a number of competitive schools and I liked Wake the best, but she was initially cool... as time went on she decided she wanted to go to Wake and ended up applying early decision. They actually asked her to come back for an interview and after that the lady talked to both of us and essentially told her that she was accepted. We've been very happy.

By all means... take the trip to Michigan and have fun! My daughter and I had a great time just making trips to about a dozen schools. I found it interesting to see some of them that I hadn't seen before.
 
Be sure to hit Super Liquor IV, just south of I-94 and just off State St. Great selection to choose from.
 
Spent 3 years in AA. Inspectah gave some pretty good advice.

Zingerman's (not the Roadhouse) is an absolute must. One of the best delis in the country. I know it sounds dumb, it's a deli. But it's basically one of the best sandwiches you'll have in your life. My advice would be to go on Friday night or first thing Sunday morning. With it being a game day, it's going to be slammed on Saturday, i.e. you'll be waiting in a very long line outside for a very long time. Zingerman's pastrami is better than Katz's in NYC. I've had both in a fairly close time frame. Katz's is great but I give the nod to Zingerman's on an objective basis.

Angelo's is good. But I wouldn't call it a must. There are a lot of really good brunch options in Ann Arbor and I wouldn't sweat any one in particular. Afternoon Delight, Cafe Zola, Broken Egg.
https://detroit.eater.com/maps/best-brunch-breakfast-ann-arbor-michigan

I highly recommend you try to go to the game. $150 sounds about right. IU is not a big rival, UM is pretty much assured a win, so it's not like you're going on MSU, ND, or tOSU weekend. A lot of life in AA, particularly in the Fall revolves around Michigan football. And it will be a great to experience that while you're there. I'd recommend you get down there early and take in the tailgating experience, even if you're just walking around. North and East of the stadium is where most of the students are. South of the stadium on the golf course is where most of the alumni or just regular hard core fans are. The tailgating is really established over there. Big screen TVs, smokers, etc.

I could recommend various bars, but that's probably not on your trip agenda.

Skip the Brown Jug entirely. It's just a campus dive bar/restaurant. Not really notable. Although Eminem did a surprise performance there one night when I was in school on a gameday weekend. And it's also where Jim Harbaugh purportedly bought a burger for a recruit that has now brought the NCAA's wrath. It's worth walking on the street where the Brown Jug is just because it's a main street for the college with lots of student life.

Regarding campus, I think the law school is basically the nicest part. I don't think the campus overall is as beautiful as Wake's. However, the law quad is amazing and the new business school next to it looks very cool and modern. The rest of campus is kind of a big school in a small town, which means it has a lot of amenities, i.e .bars, restaurants, etc. I never spent any time in the Greek houses east of campus but some look amazing.

Feel free to reach out with any particular questions.
 
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