I hear really good things about Kalamazoo. It would position him really well for grad school. He could go to a lot of places from there. They also do a lot of study abroad and that would be a great thing to do.

You're right GammaGirl, the kids here do take Michigan for granted. It is right in their backyard and a lot more in state kids are accepted there. It is typically the place the high achieving kids from this high school go. Very few even attempt anywhere else. For that reason, it doesn't seem like that big of a deal to them. They don't understand the reputation it has. Hypo actually understands it now that she is away. She has said in conversation that she had to decide between Michigan and Barnard and people say "Wow! Michigan!" She really didn't get it before.

It's interesting to read the perspectives people have about your state and the schools there. I'm a life-long Michiganian and I've traveled to most corners of our country. I wouldn't live anywhere else. Every state is about what you make of it. I grew up in MSU's backyard and now live just north of Grand Rapids. I love it over here and enjoyed growing up in mid-Michigan.

And as a Spartan all I can say is that I hope he can take off his familiarity breeds indifference glasses and see what an opportunity he has to go to Michigan. Like any good Spartan, I despise Michigan but even I know that kids from around the country would chop off their right arm for the opportunity to attend there.

I had 150 in my graduating class and I couldn't wait to get to a big university. So nice to not have everyone know your business and have some privacy to choose your own path! :)

We are signed up for accepted student days at Michigan and Kalamazoo. He is going to compose a letter to the admissions counselor at Brown and inquire about the best way to supply the additional letter of recommendation. We discussed who he will ask to write that letter and what kind of information it should include (they want "new" information). He completely rejects the idea of a gap year (his dad will be relieved). He does not reject the idea of going to Brown for grad school!

After discussing all this for the first time with him (he's been at his dad's house this week), he said "I'm scared to go anywhere." I said "That's because it is scary. I was terrified too." He said "I think I'm going to hate it no matter where I am." I said "I hated my first semester. Everything was unfamiliar. I didn't know people. I didn't where to go to get things done and I hadn't found my 'tribe' yet. I wanted to go home. But the second semester it all started to change. I found my people and then I didn't want to leave." He just nodded.

You Kalamazoo fans please don't take this the wrong way but it is not an elite college like Williams, Davidson or Carleton. A UM degree is worth much more just because of its name and reputation. On the positive side, a Brown waitlist student could be a real star at Kalamazoo but just another student at UM.
As far as college visits go, I visited a lot of colleges when I was a HS senior and looking back on it all you see is a bunch of buildings, which tells you nothing about what being a student there is really like and if the college is a good fit for you as an individual.
Best of luck to you what ever you decide.

Michigan is fabulous, but if he want he wants is a liberal arts education, that's what Kalamazoo does. It may be closer to what he wants in a learning community, and Kalamazoo does very well with grad school acceptances, if that is what he wants.

If you're doing it right, a college visit is more than seeing a "bunch of buildings." My niece (who's going through the same process as Halo right now) went on a tour and spent the night at a few colleges, and there was one she absolutely couldn't stand. Even walking around with her, it was very clear that the campus culture--from the events posted on campus to the student center--wasn't a good match for her. If you want a small Christian college, visiting a place like UF would be an eye opener and not because of the buildings at all.

Great answer, Mom!

Both schools provide excellent opportunities, if he takes advantage of them. Kzoo allows for intense research experience with the professors, very small class sizes and a more personalized setting. Michigan has every opportunity known to man, but you have to work a little harder to find them.

He has now banned all college talk until his visits. That concerns me. I want him to get excited about his possibilities. I don't know if he's just wallowing in lost opportunities or afraid to think about it or what.

He has seen all the buildings at both schools. That's not what we do on college visits. On college visits we hear more about the programs available, we people watch to see how the students are interacting with each other. And yes, he read all the posters posted around for the activities on campus. That's largely why he decided not to apply to Cornell. At the student union there, students were eating lunch alone at a table, glued to their laptops. When walking across campus, they were walking alone, not in pairs or groups. At Brown and Oberlin, students were all in pairs or groups, talking and engaged with each other. It was a very different vibe.

Wishing your son the best as he makes this important decision. My two cents: Michigan has a huge national alumni presence. I have never set foot at UM, but I have networked the heck out of their alumni and they've connected me with fellow alumni throughout my career/s. My UM friends are actively engaged in alumni clubs and have an incredible networking system. Liberal arts and learning how to think at a small school are nice concepts, but I think in terms of job prospects and alumni reach, that is something to consider. Especially in this economy with underemployed college grads and zero job security. Again, I'm sure the other school could be a great fit, but just wanted to point out a personal experience and I'm sure he will make the best decision for him.

I'm hoping at this point he goes Michigan- for several reasons. I can't try to sway or persuade though- this is his decision and he has to do what's comfortable for him.

I'm following this closer than any recruitment thread…ever.

What AZTheta said. I read that news article about the kid who got into all eight Ivies, and my first thought was "don't pick Brown so that Halo can have your spot."

I joked on the College Confidential Parents of the class of 2014 thread that any one whose child is contemplating Brown or Oberlin should be strongly encouraged to attend elsewhere...lol. I admitted to having ulterior motives :)

It's making me crazy that he won't talk about it at all.

This is SO different than the process with Hypo. She was all terrified this would happen to her, but she got her dream school. He's a stronger applicant in every way and ... *shrug*

Letting you know what a steaming hot crapshoot this all is.

P.S. re the fun of being part of the second largest alumni base in the world: The Michigan Alumni Club of DC gives away a $25,000 scholarship every year. I'm sitting here RIGHT NOW reading applications for the scholarship committee, which I sit on as the college-fairs chair. 37 hopefuls are trying to convince me that they deserve the money, including the young man whose qualifications I'm reviewing right now ... who is, apparently, an "AP Scholor." Sigh.