Published by Eric Epplett on Mon, Dec 01, 2014
Western Michigan University
Why I Chose WMU
Rob Minielly
Aviation Flight Science
Before making my decision to attend Western Michigan University, I was considering other schools for aviation all over the country. I flew out to California, Arizona, and Texas. I loved every campus I toured and loved the states even more. Who doesn’t want to live in California? Or even Texas or Arizona? It was a tough decision to pick a school because all of them had so much to offer. In Arizona, Texas, and California, you have blue skies over 75% of the year. Arizona offered a tougher flight-training program because most of the flying was in the mountains. Both schools in Texas had planes with the standard six-pack, which in my opinion challenges students more than flying an airplane equipped with a glass-cockpit. When I toured Western Michigan University, initially, I was not impressed with Kalamazoo, which is where main campus is located. I did not like the atmosphere compared to the cities other schools were in, and initially did not want to attend a school with the reputation of a party town. But in the end, I chose Western Michigan University and here is why.
Party town. Let’s be honest here, every college has parties whether you are at Arizona State University or a small division 2 college. Attending Western Michigan University has actually been beneficial to me because it has taught me to be independent, and not give into activities that are going on if I have things to do. I know when I can go have fun and when I need to stay in to get things done.
Kalamazoo was just rated the seventh most fun city in the state. There are plenty of things to do if you step out of the campus bubble and venture out. During summer breaks, I spend a lot of my time fishing on the numerous lakes 15 minutes south of Kalamazoo, boating, and driving to South Haven, a city on the shore of Lake Michigan, with all of my friends. I also enjoy riding my dirt bike on the trails all over West Michigan and have also found a track to race at 20 minutes north of Kalamazoo. In the fall, I spend all of my free time hunting. West Michigan is great for hunting, especially the state land because it is usually unpopulated which is extremely rare in other parts of the state. As for Western, our sporting events are always a hot spot to be. Our hockey games are known to get wild. The student section, called the “Lawson Lunatics,” was voted the second best student section in all of college hockey. College is what you make of it. Venturing out of the campus bubble allowed for a great three years. I have visited many schools where my friends attend and I can honestly say Western Michigan University has some of the friendliest people you will meet. You can walk up to anyone and instantly make new friends.
In terms of academics, the College of Aviation is primarily why I chose Western Michigan University. They have a name respected nationwide, state-of-the-art aircraft, and faculty with unrivaled experience. While wearing a WMU Aviation shirt, I cannot tell you the number of times that someone has come up to me and asked about our aviation program and shared the good things they have heard. Our reputation does not lie. Graduates receive a degree that already puts them ahead in the industry. Most of all, the quality of flight training is top of the line. Students start their flight training in a Cirrus SR-20 which is a single engine, 200hp, 4-seat plane. It has a glass cockpit, which means there are not traditional steam gauges; there are two screens that give you more information than you typically need to know. The automation in the plane is incredible, autopilot can be used almost the whole flight although that is rarely allowed for training purposes.
The four seasons of Michigan are challenging in more ways than most schools. One of the first things you learn is determining the weather and if today is a good day or a bad day for a flight lesson. You don’t get to experience flying in the snow and icy conditions in Arizona, Texas, or California. You rarely get to shoot an instrument approach coming out of the clouds 500ft above the ground. Here, runways are almost always covered in snow during the winter, and flying in these conditions challenges students in more ways than other schools can offer. People know about Western Michigan University Aviation. The College of Aviation has built a tremendous name in the past 75 years and hopes to make that name even stronger in the next 75.