University of Michigan, USA

Founded in 1817, University of Michigan, USA is ranked among the top 20 universities worldwide in the Times Higher Education and QS World University Rankings 2011-12

Sited on a 3,177 acre campus in Ann Arbor, University of Michigan (UM) is a public university highly ranked and rated for academic and research excellence. Founded in 1817, University of Michigan, USA is ranked among the top 20 varsities worldwide in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings and QS World University Rankings 2011-12. The US News and World Report rates 95 of its study programmes among the Top 10 in the US — making it the fourth higher education institution (after UC, Berkeley, Harvard and Stanford) in the US to boast 95 Top 10-ranked programmes.

One of the original eight public Ivy League universities and founder member of the Association of American Universities, University of Michigan, USA has 59,993 students tutored by 6,941 faculty on its muster rolls. Its 19 schools offer a wide range of bachelor, Masters and doctoral programmes in the humanities, social sciences, STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), medicine, law and dentistry. “Through the contributions of thousands of faculty and hundreds of thousands of students over nearly two centuries, we have built a university known for a diversity of people, heritage, academic disciplines, and scholarly pursuit. This impressive range of individuals and intellectual activity is the very core of our academic excellence. From our 19 schools and colleges to our nationally recognised health system, the range of disciplines and their inter-relationships throughout our campus are a mirror of the world we serve as a public university,” says Mary Sue Coleman, president of University of Michigan, USA.

Founded in Detroit 195 years ago, as the University of Michigania, the institution moved westward to Ann Arbor in 1837, when the town was merely 13 years old. When the first classes were taught in 1841, University of Michigan, USA had only two professors and seven students. Over the years, it has grown in size and reputation and boasts an impressive list of alumni including former US President Gerald Ford, actress Lucy Liu of Charlie’s Angels and Kill Bill film series, and NFL (National Football League) quarterback Tom Brady.

Ann Arbor. Sited 40 miles west of Detroit, Ann Arbor (pop.114,000) is a college town with Michigan University largely shaping its economy. The varsity not only employs 30,000 people but has attracted several technology companies drawn to the township by its research and development budgets and high quality graduates.

Founded in 1824, Ann Arbor offers students and visitors a wide range of activity options. It hosts galleries, theatres, museums, a year-round farmers’ market, shops and an array of multi-cuisine restaurants. Moreover, the city also boasts 157 municipal parks ranging from small neighbourhood green spots to large recreation areas. Several large city parks together with a university park border the banks of the Huron river.

Ann Arbor offers a typically Mid-west humid continental climate influenced by the Great Lakes. Winters are cold with moderate to heavy snowfall, while summers are warm and humid. In between, spring and autumn are short but mild. Average temperatures range from 30oC in summer to -5oC in winter.

Campus facilities. The university’s massive 3,177 acre main campus in Ann Arbor is split into the Central, North, South, and East campuses and medical centre. While the Central and South campus areas are contiguous, North campus is separated from them by the Huron river. Together they house 571 buildings offering state-of-the-art academic, sports and recreational facilities. Moreover, the campus hosts a number of galleries and museums including the Exhibit Museum of Natural History (a 20,000 sq. ft area featuring anthropology, zoology, and paleontology exhibits which draw 70,000-80,000 visitors per year); the Nichols Arboretum (a 123 acre “living museum” show-casing plants from around the world) and Kelsey Museum which houses a collection of nearly 100,000 ancient and medieval objects from civilisations of the Mediterranean and the Near East. Also on display across the campus are more than 100 works of art, including outdoor sculptures, artefacts, and memorials. Its Ann Arbor campus apart, University of Michigan, USA has two regional campuses at Flint and Dearborn.

Library facilities are extensive with the main University Library serving the student body from several locations. Specialist libraries include the Bentley Historical, William L. Clements, Gerald R. Ford, Kresge Business Administration and the Law libraries. Together, they house 12 million volumes and 150,000 serial titles.

The university’s sports infrastructure is also enviable. The Central Campus Recreation Building, the largest facility on campus, houses three basketball, two volleyball and three badminton courts; a 200-metre elevated running track; a six-lane swimming pool; free-weights and fitness rooms; and a full range of cardio training equipment. The Intramural Sports Building, the first collegiate intramural sports building in America, offers four basketball courts; a five-lane swimming pool; free-weights and fitness rooms; an M-rock climbing wall; and connections to the Cliff Keen Arena, Canham Natatorium, and the University of Michigan Varsity Track. The North Campus Recreation Building offers selectorised and cardiovascular training machines, and courts for racquetball, basketball, volleyball, and badminton. The South campus plays host to all the university’s athletic programmes, and includes major sports facilities such as Michigan Stadium, Crisler Arena, and Yost Ice Arena.

Moreover, 1,200 student organisations offer assorted social and cultural activities round the year.

Admission. The minimum eligibility requirement for admission into UM’s undergraduate programmes is successful completion of Plus Two. In addition, all undergraduate first-year applicants are required to submit results of SAT or the ACT, secondary school and teacher evaluation reports, and scores of English proficiency tests such as TOEFL or IELTS. The completed Common Application and the University of Michigan supplement need to be submitted before February 1 for admission into the term beginning September.

For further information, contact University of Michigan, Office of Undergraduate Admissions, 1220 Student Activities Building, 515 East Jefferson Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1316. Ph: 001 734 764 7433; Fax: 011 734 936 0740; e-mail: Michigan. [email protected]; website: www.umich.edu.

Accommodation. The campus offers 13 co-ed and four women-only undergraduate residence halls. Although there are differences which make each hall unique, all UM residences include live-in staff providing social and academic support, community centres, on-site laundry, easy access to the university bus system and wireless connectivity. Students can choose from a variety of meal plans offered by the university’s several dining halls and cafes.

UM’s Northwood Community Apartments and Townhouses also offer housing to graduate students/families enroled in the university. Comprising 21 buildings in five interconnected areas, Northwood offers 1,100 apartments.

Degree programmes. UM’s 19 schools and colleges offer a wide range of bachelor, Masters and doctoral programmes (see box).

Summiya Yasmeen