Reviews

Michigan Tech has a reputation of being a tough school and it's reputation is well earned. Every class I've taken has been a challenge but nothing too extreme. The university takes academic dishonestly very seriously and strives to ensure that every grade is well earned and up to snuff with what's demanded in the real world. Despite all of this, it was an easy transition from high school. Michigan Tech has dedicated learning centers for each field of study, staffed with students who know the material backwards and forwards. There's always someone to help you with something. The biggest mistake I've seen people make is to simply not go to class and not do homework. It's a challenging school for sure, but nothing you can't handle if you just keep at it.

Tech is located smack dab in the middle of Houghton, residing in the Keweenaw of upper Michigan. Briefly, we get a lot of snow. To say we take advantage of this is an understatement. Tech hosts the Winter Carnival ever February, sporting snow sculptures, live music, free food, and a lot of fun. We have a ski mountain five minutes from campus that's great for both skiers and snowboarders of every skill level. If you were into music in high school and still want to continue I saved the best part for last . Michigan Tech is the proud home of none other than the Michigan Tech Huskies Pep Band. A completely student run organization that plays at every school sporting event and a whole lot more.(Sorry if this seems a bit biased, I'm in the band after all) Donning our signature black and yellow striped overalls and more than a couple silly hats we've been a staple of Tech sports and have even been the host band for the WCHA Final Five for the past three years. No other band has ever been invited more than once. But no matter what you're into, there's a group for it and you'll quickly find people to hang out and have fun with.

Michigan Tech is a great school at a great price. Cheaper than most of the other state schools in Michigan with a reputation that is respected everywhere. If you're going into any engineering field, give Tech a serious consideration. You can't find a better school for it in state.

If you don't go to class or do you're work you'll fail anywhere and Tech is no exception. There's so much help available it's really hard to not find anyone to get advice from. The university puts a lot of effort into making freshmen feel welcome and introducing them to college life.

Students who want to be challenged and graduate from a prestigious university. Prospective engineering majors for sure, but Tech also has a solid humanities program as well as flourishing business school that have garnered a lot of acclaim in recent years. Whatever you want to go into, Michigan Tech can help you get there.

Michigan Tech is definitely a challenging school. There is a slightly sharp learning curve, especially in the first year. Once you figure out the best studying habits, however, it does become easier.

Residing in the dorms is an awesome way to meet new people. For me, college was an excellent chance to break out of my shell and join several organizations, such as the MTU TV Production Club, which created its own sitcom, Colledge (that is how we spell it), as well as going Greek by joining a fraternity.

Even though it doesn't seem like there's much up here, the Keweenaw area does offer an environment for many types of outdoor recreation. The opportunities to enjoy oneself have very few limits. As long as you learn how to balance fun and school, you should have little problems.

Michigan Technological University is a great school for learning. No matter your class, teacher or learning style you can always find someone that will help you learn what you need to learn. Almost all professors will help you outside of class to learn the material if you need help, and even if you are with a professor that does not go out of their way to help you, you can find other professors willing to help. There are also tons of learning centers where fellow students can tutor you for free. The learning centers are a huge help in studies and also a great way to meet people. Before I got to tech I never felt as challenged as I wanted to be, when I got to Tech I was able to take classes at a rate that I wanted to and love the classes. Classes are challenging but also fun and offer great opportunities to learn. To learn at Tech you have apply yourself, it is a lot of work and does not come extremely easy but with work it is very easy to learn all that you need to.

Michigan Technological University can be a very fun and adventurous school but it is not for everyone. For some people it is the perfect school and for others it is not the school for them. It is up to you to have fun, meet people, and find things to do. It is far away from big cities which some people don't like but there is tons to do outside and the school does a great job creating things for students to do. There are a lot of great people at the school but there are also a lot of different types of people, if you are open to meet new people that aren't quite like you, than you can make a lot of great friendships. I have had a great time at Tech but it is up to the individual to make it fun.

The cost for college is high no matter where you go, but compared to a lot of other good schools Tech offers a great price for such a great education. I have been so happy with my education and experience for the price I pay especially hearing how unhappy some of my friends are at their much more expensive schools. But it is a lot of money and if you decide that Tech is right for you, you should make sure you take advantage of the opportunities that you pay for. If you are going to pay so much to attend Tech you should attend classes and try hard, its only worth as much as you want to put into it, if your not going to work hard than you shouldn't pay so much for school. But if you want to get a great education and work hard for it than the money is totally worth it to go to Tech.

Tech has a lot of opportunities to learn but it takes a lot of work. Don’t skip classes, because once you start it is too easy to keep skipping classes, if your paying for it and want to learn you should attend all of your classes. Also it is really good to get into a study habit, don’t just do homework when you have it or just study when you feel like it. Have a schedule of when to study and what to work on, if you stick to it it makes it much easier to stay focused and makes school a lot more enjoyable. It is also really important to have fun, studying is important but Tech is a hard school if you don’t have fun every once in a while school becomes unenjoyable it makes it harder to do good.

Students that want to be challenged in their academics that truly love what they are going to school for. Tech is only for people that want to work hard, if you are willing to put the effort in there is so much to learn from the professors and students from Tech but if you don't want to put the effort in Tech most likely isn't for you. If you love the outdoors than Tech is a great school for you, there is so much to do and so much great nature around the school. There are so many great and different people that teach at and attend Tech, so if you want a chance to get to know new and different people than Tech is a great school to attend and there is a good chance that when you graduate from Tech you'll leave with a lot of great friends.

michigan tech provides a top education along with an atmosphere where students thrive. as a tech student almost everyone is an average of 500 miles away from home and therefore we form a very close community with the university and with the keweenaw community in general. the size of the school allows for a learning environment filled with hands-on experience, while still having the knowledge, skill and reputation to have career fairs with over 300 companies in attendance hoping to hire some of our 5600 students, 96% of which will graduate with a job in their field or go into a graduate program.

from a current student to a prospective my advice would be to use all of the resources being handed to you and research all of what they are. especially going to learning centers (just because you have a b doesn't mean you couldn't get an a) and getting help with what you don't understand; once you get far enough into your degree there are no learning centers for you to utilize and then ask your professor questions! always talk to those that have taken the classes and check out the professor options beforehand and research their teaching styles. there is nothing worse than choosing the wrong professor for you. good luck.

it's a hard school, depending on your major of course but, there is no denying it so prepare yourself. people always say that the first year is the hardest but it isn't your first year will fly by and everything will be fine and dandy, but beware of the third year as you will be taking the same number of credit hours, but these classes will be very hard and all will require hours of hard work and you probably will not have time for all of it. this is where time management is key. in university one must make the decision of when to choose one class over another in order to prevail in both.

living in the residence halls at michigan tech was amazing, if it weren't so expensive i would definitely have lived there longer than my first year. how michgan tech's meal plan works is that all options are unlimited, only the number of guest passes and "vending machine dollars" changes. when living in a small room on a floor filled with other college students, where your bathrooms are cleaned for you and your meals are prepared all day until 9 pm academics are manageable. prepare yourself if you plan on living off-campus as these everyday things like cooking, cleaning, laundry, and driving really cut into your scholastic time. as far as fun goes in the residence halls all have game rooms with table tennis and pool tables as well as big ballrooms with projectors and all residence halls have laundry facilities on sight as well as kitchenettes in most halls within the 3 differing residence halls. of these residence halls wadsworth hall is the largest and newest, mcnair hall is a little older and a little homier, while douglass houghton hall is the first ever residence hall at michigan tech (many people refer to this as the harry potter residence hall). personally i lived in dhh and it was a year i will never forget.

like i said unlimited food within the dining halls. they do have a day to day menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner. in addition to this there is always, a salad bar, a sandwich bar, a cereal bar, an option of pizza, an option of burgers/garden burgers and fries as well as make your own stir fry stations, all kind of fresh fruit and even waffle makers. believe me when i say you will not go hungry.

as previously stated the only difference within michigan tech's meal plans are the amount of dining dollars (vending machine/cafe) and/or guest passes.

michigan tech is actually located within the keweenaw peninsula so outdoors wise there is a ton to do including: hiking/biking/cross country skiing/snowmobiling/snowshoeing the tech trails or mont ripley our ski/snowboard hill, mount bohemia is close by another ski hill as well as the porcupine mountains or copper harbor. in the summer a lot of students will spend a lot of time outside on the beautiful beaches of lake superior. michigan tech is located along the portage canal which leads into lake superior 10-15 minutes down the road. the community is basically tech students with a few "yoopers" thrown in for moral support. the campus population is roughly 7,000 where as the city of houghton is roughly 8,000. in the winter the true north really shows from all our winter activities we actually even have winter carnival where many of our students create huge snow statues or participate in the copper dog 150 sled race or see who can grow the best beard. we definitely know how to have fun. in the area there are a lot of gaming businesses as well as outdoorsy businesses, not to mention we have over 200 student ran organizations too keep you busy.

michigan tech was actually rated the number 1 college in michigan in 2015 by the brookings institution as the top college by salary data as compared to expectations. the study predicted that the median career average salary was $69,975, but in reality it was $97,300.

prince's point - a beach on campus along the portage canal
mont ripley - skii and snowboard hill
winter carnival (4 day celebration in february)
tech trails - 35 km of wooded trail
otter river cabin - owned by tech and capable of being rented for a camping trip (normally used by the forestry department)

outdoorsy
nerdy
gaming
your general weirdos

over 20 student organizations to join!
from academic to keweenaw pride to greek life.

around 8 percent of michigan tech students are greek, myself included (apo -epsilon lambda).

there are 8 sororities on campus and around 14 fraternities.

this does not include alpha phi omega (the largest service fraternity in the country founded on the boy scouts of america), mu beta psi (the music fraternity) along with a few other academic greek organizations.

i believe in 2012 michigan tech was named the 12th safest campus in the country. we're located in the upper peninsula of michigan so it is a small town country atmosphere. our campus security, public safety, is actually one with the normal houghton pd and has several locations within the city, one of which on campus and one downtown houghton.

Many of my first year classes covered the basics in engineering, chemistry, physics, and other sciences. I picked up quite a bit though most students retain about a third of what they learn. Some of your classes will definitely build on themselves (ie when you take statics, you will need to redraw from your physics). However, the courses are easily paced since material is normally reviewed or otherwise sample problems will be demonstrated in class, some of which are mostly similar to homework problems. The engineering courses are definitely not for the faint of heart, I took a 3rd/4th year class (Chemical Processes for Environmental Engineers) that ran deep into water chemistry. Some of the less brilliant students had trouble following as the class pace was quite quick. I do remember some of my other first and second year classes have a quick course pace. This is definitely a step up from my high school. My school progressed slowly through material to keep the much less intelligent students on board. If you're taking several AP courses and/or you are doing quite well in school, GPA 3.0+ (3.5+ recommended), you will enjoy the pace of some of the basic courses and will do fine C+/B- and probably higher in even the toughest of classes. If you are, perhaps, not a brainiac, you can still do well in the classes with help from the learning centers. Sometimes, even the smartest of students can benefit from these centers as they can work with other students in simply doing work, as what happens in my department at the Student Success Center

I do like it here quite a bit. I've lived in the dorms my first two years and moved to on campus apartments my third/current year. In the dorms, you will make a lot of friends that would have otherwise seemed impossible to have done, especially if you live in a learning-community hall (there are a select few halls in the dormitories that give you a closer-knit bond with your hallmates through several planned activities). One of these activities is the winter carnival snow statues that are resurrected each year into beautiful masterpieces. It makes the campus scene very enjoyable in february after all the snow. Another aspect of being here that I like is the opportunity to play as many intramural sports, attend Division I games for free, enjoy the snowboarding/ski hill, portage lake golf course, and free admission to the indoor Gates Tennis Center all for $64 per semester. If you are an active student, this is definitely a bargain. Another cool thing is broomball-a sport played like hockey without skates, with modified brooms and a 6 sized ball. It is the best equivalent for many students to being in a varsity sport since broomball has such a high tradition and support level throughout the community. Some of the downsides of living here can be the tremendous amounts of lake effect snow we receive. The BIGGEST downside however is the distance away from home you will have to be. Since this college is located in the far western upper peninsula of Michigan, you will likely be quite isolated from family. You may come from MN or WI which makes you a bit closer, but you will pay out of state tuition=$30000. If you are in-state, which basically means you are from the Metro-Detroit area, Saginaw, Grand Rapids, you have a long drive my friend. If from any other state, you are probably looking at either a LONG drive or an expensive plane trip home.
Another good thing about the university, something that just came to mind, is that there are GREAT! opportunities to take a le...

Well I quite covered that in the previous:
OUT OF STATE (NOT MI)=$30,000 typical
IN-STATE (MI)=$17,000 typical and maybe a bit more (dorms)

It is the second most expensive school in Michigan second only to UofMich. The education is pretty good and Michigan Tech has a very good reputation. A college degree from Michigan Tech is very good in the eyes of many employers. In previous years (when the economy was better), most students would get internships from companies that came to the Michigan Tech career fair.

Take science and math oriented classes and apply for scholarships to help pay. Also, research each of the majors you may be interested in-mechanical, environmental, chemical, electrical, civil engineering or computer science, physics, mathematics, geology so that you don't waste time and MONEY on courses. I have a good head in each of these due to my lengthy career here so feel free to ask me and especially one of the representatives on the admissions page.

This is a science and engineering-oriented university. It's biggest programs are in the engineering department, so if you enjoy the engineering challenge, then this is the right school for you!! It also has some good program majors in the sciences department such as material sciences and mechanical engineering technology. It is THE #1 school for forestry, so any interest in the woods would do you well.

MTU is a snow covered refuge for all varieties of technology-addicts, with its own meme page and refreshing humor. The workload can be tough but the professors are relatable and the outdoor activities range from broomball, disc golf, and frisbockey, to Comic-Con, programming tournaments, and the boisterous MTU Pep Band. With fun traditions such as the Winter Carnival Snow Statues building and more career-oriented Enterprise organizations, MTU has something for everyone.

If you're an outdoors type, bring your mountain bike for the extensive trail system. Take advantage of free skiing and snowboarding at Mt. Ripley.

Don't buy textbooks until you know you'll need them. Sometimes everything the teacher wants you to have is available online and you don't need to purchase books at all.

Don't be afraid to try something new. Whether you're interested in the Permanently Floating Riot Club or running for Winter Carnival Queen.

Academic rigor really depends on what major you're going in to. If you want to be an engineer, be prepared for long hours spent on homework and group projects. Non-engineering STEM majors can also be quite rigorous. If you want a good education but you can't handle the workload, look at Technology majors instead of the standard Engineering majors. Remember that learning centers are located all over campus and your instructor is always there to help.

There is a wide variety of dorm life at Michigan Tech. Wadsworth hall is the most social hall, with a lot of Greek Life members coming out of it. East McNair houses a larger percentage of school-minded students and students with alternative interests (Ex: Computer Science Learning Community). DHH is a smaller dorm with a more close knit community for those seeking lifelong friendships.

There's been some cuts in the food budget, and the Dining Hall has decided to decrease dining hall hours instead of cutting back on food quality. This means that some dining halls close earlier than others, and you'll have to take a short walk to get food at times, but to keep the food quality decent it's worth it, as the dorms are all located quite near each other.

At Michigan Tech there's free snowboarding and skiing. There's an extensive trail system for bikers, runners, and those just wanting to take a nice walk. Our pep band is loud and entertaining at our sporting events and students are admitted to many sporting events for free. There's also programming competition, Magic! card games, an anime club and clubs for intellectual interests such as Women in Computer Science, Linux Users Group, Mobile Developer's Club, and many others. You can learn to dance at Swing Club, sing and worship at a large number of Christian Organizations, or debate religious ideas at open-minded debates held thoughout the year.

Although expensive, Michigan Tech gives a high quality education in STEM subjects. If you're interested in liberal arts it's probably not worth the money, unless you're interested in applying your liberal arts degree in a technical minded company.

Winter Carnival is an exciting time of the year where classes are stopped for a couple days and students compete in building enormous snow statues. There is a coronation court, partying, music and dancing on campus, and a crowded and exciting hockey and basketball game for the weekend. There is also Zombie Tag on campus and sidewalk chalk everywhere.

MTU is great for technical minded students. You can debate the pros and cons of different operating systems, new software, video games, and the latest phones.

A large list of active clubs can be found on the MTU website, and types range from intramural sports to nerd-themed to community service. There is quite literally a club for everyone, and if you find it lacking it's easy to start up your own!

Greek life is very active on campus, hosting events for students on campus, parties off campus, and charity events. There are more fraternities than sororities due to the ratio of students at MTU (3:1 male to female), but everyone interested can pledge. Greek Life at MTU is very friendly and open.

The campus police do an excellent job on campus. Houghton is a small town with little to no crime, but the campus police are there to make sure no student ever feels unsafe on campus.

One of the main reasons I decided to attend Michigan Tech is so I could get a great education, and that's exactly what I'm getting. The classes are filled with information and all of your professors KNOW what they're talking about. Some of what you're learning can be a bit fast paced, but each professor has office hours where they'll be more than happy to meet with you and explain one on one. A lot of my classes and labs are hands on, which is a great way of learning things easier and faster because you actually get to do it.
The bottom line is, if you decide to attend Michigan Tech, you will be getting a great education.

I love the atmosphere of this school, and town. It's smaller, but I love the fact that I can walk to my classes and it doesn't entail walking two miles to different classes, they're all together on one campus. The small setting of the town is the same way, you may not think there's anything to do, but if you take the time to get out and enjoy what this area has to offer you will be amazed.

A lot of people tell me that I can be getting the same education at a school that's much cheaper than this one, but I don't think so. Sure, some of the classes you can go anywhere for. But by attending Michigan Tech I feel like I am just getting more out of it then if I were going anywhere else. I am learning so much and I'm enjoying being here.

Try and do a roommate match before you start school. Once you say that you are for sure attending Michigan Tech they send you information about finding roommates. You can always go in blind but I advise you use the program they offer you. It's kind of like a personality questionnaire that you fill out with your different habits and likes and dislikes. It can help you find the perfect roommate. And a perfect roommate not only won't get on your nerves or be completely opposite of you, they'll become one of your best friends.

Michigan Tech is known for Engineering. But it's also great for all other types of majors and departments, other than engineering there are forestry, computer science, business, science... And tons of other degrees and programs. Also, if you're not too sure about the big campus types of schools in very urban settings this is also the school for you. It's small enough where you can walk to your classes in 5 minutes, but also big enough where you're always meeting new people.

"Easy to get in, but hard to stay in" is one of the truest sayings that go around. Going here is a lot of hard work but it is worth it.

It is a technical university so expect a lot of engineer guys

There are one or two freshman weed-out classes but professors are overall personally invested in the success of the class.

The rooms are a little small but aren't they everywhere. Wadsworth hall is one of the longest dormitories in the country

Food is overall very edible, however, it does go down a little before breaks

Not much... but there are occasional university organized events and it's a great place for winter sports

Engineers or hard science focused students

Recently announced as safest campus in the country

Michigan Tech is a quality school in an amazing location. Academic opportunities here are numerous and beneficial if you are independently motivated. The opportunity to explore the Keweenaw Peninsula and its natural and archaeological beauty is also a major perk.

Be able to motivate yourself to work hard and be responsible for your own success. Professors here will not take it easy on you as a freshman, and many of them won't be able to communicate very well, so you need to be able to get things done yourself.

Some classes, primarily gen. ed., are super easy at Tech, but many of the core classes in the engineering disciplines become incredibly intense. This understandably varies by instructor, but overall the subject matter covered in a majority of courses is difficult in nature. The hardest part of many classes is the lack of actual instruction that many professors do. You will have several classes in which you need to teach yourself all of the material from the book.

Dorm life for me has been great. Most of the students at Tech are like-minded, and therefore you will probably get along well with several people, and will make a lot of friends. Being at a technical schools like Michigan Tech means that campus culture is less varied than at a liberal arts school. Everybody here is a geek, and so we mostly have similar interests and get along.

At Tech you get unlimited meals if you live in the residence halls, but there's a price: the food isn't four-star. Most of the time the meals are good, they just tend to cycle quickly, meaning that you will probably have the same meals every three weeks or so. Occasional special dinners are incredible, and often feature steak and other nice food. The other downside to campus dining is location. While each dorm has its own dining hall, The dining hall in Douglas Houghton Hall only serves breakfast and lunch on weekdays, and on the weekends only the Wadsworth Hall dining hall is open for brunch and dinner (in the winter the walk to Wads can be uncomfortable). McNair Hall's dining hall offers late night food until 9 pm, which is great.

The Keweenaw Peninsula is an amazing place to play in and explore. Numerous mines and mining ruins, old growth forests, beaches, snow sports (including a campus ski hill across the lake), and other fun activities make Houghton a fun place to live. Lastly, access to the campus rec center and the ski hill across the lake is free to students (ski/board rental costs money)!

Michigan Tech is very expensive for a state university (estimated 27k per year in-state in 2012/2013), and I do not feel that it is quite worth that much. While employers value a Michigan Tech education and will hire many high achieving students that graduate, leaving school with a ton of debt is not something that is easily remedied, even with a nice job. Tech is a great school, and you will be great at whatever you study when you graduate, but the cost may be prohibitive for some.

Winter Carnival is the big tradition at Michigan Tech. During late January or early February every year thousands of people trek up to Houghton for a festival that celebrates snow, ice, and hockey. Students build enormous statues of snow and ice (either one-night or month-long projects), the hockey team hosts a weekend series, and the campus is filled with music, free stuff, and hundreds of people for a week. Class gets out on Wed. of that week, and so there are five days off for students.

Another great tradition is broomball. Originating in Scandinavia, it is essentially hockey with brooms, just without skates and in a smaller rink. Also, instead of a puck there is a hard rubber ball. Broomball is a hardy sport that is physically intense and a ton of fun. Sliding all over the place and trying to smack a ball into a goal with a duck-taped broom is great fun.

Smart people!
Geeks (nerds, etc.)
Curious individuals
Adventurous types
Motivated people

There are clubs for pretty much any interest and organization you could imagine, including fraternities, sororities, religious orgs, academic interest orgs, special interest orgs, technical orgs (sound and lighting, recording tech., etc.), and others.

I am not involved in greek life, so I can't really speak on it.

Michigan Tech was, in 2011, rated the 2nd safest campus in the country. Enough said. The only thing that can be dangerous about Michigan Tech is the weather, if you're not a cautious driver.

I can now look at almost any manufactured product and determine how it was made and its design flaws.

Nice, small campus with a welcoming group of people.

I'm spending my second summer in and internship so it's been worth it.

Be prepared for a cold winter and challenging classes.
Look up Winter Carnival, it's a great time.

People who love the outdoors, winter sports, cold weather, engineering, nerdy stuff, biking.