<p>My S has so far been admitted to the Kelley Business School at IU and to the Arts & Sciences School at UWisconsin. He's interested in combining a business and journalism degree and can do so at both schools. IU's B-school is rated higher than UWisconsin's, I believe, but UWisconsin as a whole is rated higher than IU. He received a $9,000/year scholarship to IU, nothing to UWisconisn. We're OOS. We haven't visited either yet so that's why I'm mentioning rankings, although I don't usually like to be too heavily influenced by those. We will visit in the next few months. Anyone have any personal experience with either of these choices?</p>
<p>Both universities offer outstanding opportunities for those students willing to take advantage of the resources. In this situation, Indiana University is the better choice, in my opinion, for the obvious reasons already stated in your original post.</p>
<p>Does S have any reason to believe he won't be accepted into Wisconsin's business school when the time comes? That would be a definite factor for me - bird in the hand and all. IU will be roughly $7K less expensive each year, and winter temps will be 10 degrees or so warmer on average. I personally like UW's campus better, but for $7K, better weather and a definite acceptance at the b-school, I'd be at IU.</p>
<p>Don't pay so much attention to the university's ranking in making a decision. These rankings cover a lot of non-academic factors that, in the end, matter very little to the overall experience. I've spent a lot of time at both campuses, and the culture of both is very similar. IU does tend to be a bit more vibrant with the arts and tons of top-notch guest speakers (especially in journalism and business). Pay more attention to the rankings of the business school and journalism programs, as the rankings for these tend to focus a whole lot more on teaching quality and academic quality.</p>
<p>Bump...bump</p>