As someone who knows Michigan well, I wouldn't really call it a party school. I was at a camp on the east coast last month and one girl east coast stated she had them high on her list because it was a party school.
I don't know who's daughter it was, but I'm warning you, she will be disappointed. While Michigan is definitely has a work hard, play hard mentality, it isn't even close to the same type of party school as you see at other schools.
Academically, Michigan is great in many areas but as with any school, you'll have to look at the areas of study to find how they rank out. Great reputation, great academics, a strong tendency to burn out kids that are studying life science/bio, but an average lacrosse team.
Even though they aren't as good of a lax school as Maryland, I think Ann Arbor is still better than College Park--that's one of the ugliest areas I've set eyes on in a while.
News flash… All schools are Party Schools for the kids that want to party.
