At Michigan, it all depends on what season it is. Ann Arbor has two seasons: summer and winter, and the latter lasts about nine months of the year. When it is warm outside, students will be filling every inch of green on the diag. Our student body loves to be in the outdoors because the campus is so beautiful. But when it gets colder and snowier, you'll start to see some people stay in for the nights.
But if it is football season then it doesn't matter if it is sunny, rainy, snowy, windy, or hailing. The stadium is full on Saturdays.
Michigan football is the most storied tradition in the history of college football with more victories than anyone else...ever. That isn't a biased wolverine speaking, those are the statistics! We have the biggest stadium in the country for any sport at any level of professionalism. When you see 113,000 fans screaming at the top of their lungs, it is unlike anything you have ever or will ever witness. The moment you walk into Michigan stadium, AKA "The Big House," you'll become a wolverine for life. During the season, football is everything.
A favorite tradition of mine on the Michigan campus has to be the tailgating scene on football saturdays. As you walk down state street to the big house, you will be greeted by thousands of fans wearing Maize and Blue. Everyone is on their front lawns playing football and frisbee, barbecuing, and even drinking the occasional beer. Everyone is happy to see you and give you a high five and shout "go blue." And when Ohio State comes to town, things get even more raucous.
Nightlife is very diverse here, and so it is entirely up to you what you do on a friday night. We've got plenty of clubs and bars that are filled with people from all walks of life. Our two most popular nightclubs are Rick's American Cafè, an underground dance club with three bars, and Scorekeepers (AKA Skeeps), a three-leveled sports bar with a huge dance floor and pool tables upstairs. You're bound to see people you know there and the lines are never absurdly long.
But if clubbing isn't your thing, then you will have lots of artistic options too. Our opera, classical music, theater, musical theater, and dance departments are all world-class and there is a show almost every weekend. And student performers will do shows outside the confines of the university as well. Basement Arts is our student run theater group that has a show up almost every weekend. Every show is directed, produced, and acted entirely by students. And its free to see!
Meeting people of the opposite sex here can be a bit tricky at first. Your first inclination may be to go to some frat party, of which there are many, constantly, and find some pretty little thing and marry her. Well, that probably won't happen. You may get lucky here and there, but if you are looking for something lasting, then the party scene is not the way to go. However, you can definitely find someone at one of the many organizations or clubs that you become a part of. I met my girlfriend because we were both into theater. A lot of my friends started dating because they both worked for the paper, or were in the same dance group. "