Help:( UIUC or UW-Madison? Major?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign
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<p>Took this from the college search forum because I figured you guys might be able to help me out more.</p>

<p>So I don't really even know what I want to major in. I'm a senior in high school right now and all I know is I love math. I'm taking Calculus 3 with my high school enrolled at U of I, as well as AP Statistics. I got a 5 on my BC Calc exam and therefore a 5 on my AB subscore as well.
I've always kind of planned on being an actuary, and I'm interested in finance, at the same time, math is my strongest asset and I don't want to not ever take another math class after Calc III. I see U of I offers courses like linear algebra applied to finance and things like that- I dont know what kind of major would involve that class but that's the type of thing that interests me. Basically my major and minor would probably be some combination of Actuarial Sciences, Finance, Mathematics, or Statistics.</p>

<p>I want to have fun in college, and I know they're both alright schools party-wise but obviously Madison takes the cake there.</p>

<p>Then again, I live in Illinois and my parents locked in the tuition rates for UIUC a couple years back which is a HUGE factor, but they want the best possible college for me so it's not a determining one.</p>

<p>Think I can get any scholarships to either place? I'm well off but I have a 35 ACT (36superscored) and over a 4.0 (weighted) - only real extracurricular though is rugby...</p>

<p>I'd REALLLYYY appreciate any insight.</p>

<p>What other schools do you recommend I apply to???</p>

<p>I'd really appreciate any suggestions in or around the Midwest.</p>

<p>Is Michigan a good option?</p>

<p>Financial situation:
Basically my family is probably comfortable paying maybe 11k a year for me? My dad did not do a 529 plan he invested in what's called 'College Illinois!' which meant he pretty much prepaid for college 5 years ago, when tuition rates were nearly identical between illinois public colleges, so now I can go to any college in Illinois for that 6k a year or whatever it was that he paid 5 years ago even though U of I, for example is way more expensive than that now. The program doesn't work like that anymore, so we kind of got lucky if I do decide to go in Illinois.</p>

<p>The thing is, I would TOTALLY be willing to take out student loans to make up the difference of whatever my family can't cover, I really don't want to rule anything out because of money:/ I want to choose the perfect college.</p>

<p>My family makes ~120k a year</p>

<p>I DEFINITELY prefer large with sports. I've visited U of I and Madison and I like both campuses but UWM is prettier for sure, and I love the environment there ( don't get me wrong I don't mind U of I)</p>

<p>Did some tuition research, am i right in thinking that UW-M is like 10k more expensive for me a year as a non-resident?</p>

<p>Do you think there's any chance I could attain this scholarship to Wisconsin based on my somewhat lacking credentials? I'm guessing I need more than a 35 ACT and rugby to be considered.</p>

<p>Scholarships@UW-Madison - Scholarship Detail</p>

<p>I was wondering, though, if my sister battling cancer for a few years now would play into any scholarship or aid benefits? Like I seriously hate to "milk" my families situation but it really has been a really tough experience for me and my family and obviously it's effected us financially (not so much that I think I would qualify for aid) and made me grow. Just wondering.</p>

<p>Thanks ahead of time,
Joe</p>

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<p>Joe,</p>

<p>All of the schools you mention are excellent choices. Since you locked in tuition at previous years rates, an instate college would economically most likely be your best choice. As for your interest in Math and possibly Actuarial Science. The University of Illinois Actuarial Science program has been named as one of only 12 Centers of Actuarial Excellence in the country. See “In the News” at the below link:</p>

<p>[Mathematics</a> | Illinois](<a href=“http://www.math.uiuc.edu/]Mathematics”>http://www.math.uiuc.edu/)</p>

<p>Don’t rule out private universities as many provide excellent aid packages which bring their seemingly astronomical tuitions down to a very competitive level. Michigan, UW-Madison, and UIUC are all excellent options. If you want to stay in the midwest, I’d consider checking out Notre Dame, Purdue, WUSTL, University of Chicago, and Northwestern. If you don’t mind the coasts, Stanford or Berkley are great institutions.</p>

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<p>You should not be so anxious to take out a lot of loans for college. UIUC is excellent for actuarial sciences. With both UIUC and Wisconsin there is the possibility of some merit awards but with neither should you expect a huge amount. There are few full scholarships and what most who qualify for merit awards get is some tuition relief. Simple solution for now is apply to both (and others) and if admitted wait to see what is offered in merit awards before making final decision.</p>

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<p>Wisconsin is also on the centers actuarial excellence list. Really can’t go wrong with either, but I think UW would provide a more memorable and interesting college experience. I heard that from several folks who went to UI undergrad and UW for grad school.</p>