Miami (OH) or UW - Madison?

College Search & Selection
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<p>No, rjkofnovi, I meant what I wrote. There is a considerable amount of people in California that moved from Ohio with Miami (OH) degrees and those degrees hold weight in the CA job market.</p>

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<p>Echoing Booksrnot4orme, I too don’t think this is a slam dunk in favor of Wisconsin. With a slightly more mild climate, a prettier campus, fewer distractions, and very underrated academics, I can easily see some students preferring Miami.</p>

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<p>Prettier only if you exclude miles of lake frontage and the best student union in America. Miami does not have this and the colonial look is a bit too uniform. Maybe the architecture reflects the students.</p>

<p>[Google</a> Image Result for <a href=“http://photos.news.wisc.edu/photos/Union_terrace_night96_10.jpg[/url]”>http://photos.news.wisc.edu/photos/Union_terrace_night96_10.jpg](<a href=“http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://photos.news.wisc.edu/photos/Union_terrace_night96_10.jpg&imgrefurl=http://photos.news.wisc.edu/view.php%3Fid%3D110&h=400&w=600&sz=44&tbnid=FDAJIr3yETCw0M:&tbnh=90&tbnw=135&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dwisconsin%2Bunion%2Bterrace%2Bphotos&hl=en&usg=__QbB77JgiAeimEAjiIp-Yir-oDRk=&ei=sl2hS8KiJcGQtgeF_tjbCQ&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=4&ct=image&ved=0CAwQ9QEwAw]Google”>http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://photos.news.wisc.edu/photos/Union_terrace_night96_10.jpg&imgrefurl=http://photos.news.wisc.edu/view.php%3Fid%3D110&h=400&w=600&sz=44&tbnid=FDAJIr3yETCw0M:&tbnh=90&tbnw=135&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dwisconsin%2Bunion%2Bterrace%2Bphotos&hl=en&usg=__QbB77JgiAeimEAjiIp-Yir-oDRk=&ei=sl2hS8KiJcGQtgeF_tjbCQ&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=4&ct=image&ved=0CAwQ9QEwAw)</a></p>

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<p>“No, rjkofnovi, I meant what I wrote. There is a considerable amount of people in California that moved from Ohio with Miami (OH) degrees and those degrees hold weight in the CA job market.”</p>

<p>Oh I don’t doubt it runs into the hundreds…In the meantime I am sure a U-Wisconsin degree holds as much clout, if not more, than a Miami-Ohio degree.</p>

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<p>Thanks… :slight_smile: :smiley: :)</p>

<p>There can always be U Michigan for grad school…</p>

<p>GO BLUE!!!</p>

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<p>Wisconsin for undergrad can result in a myriad of experiences. For the most motivated students, it can be an outstanding choice–extensive resources, research opportunities, access to leading professors in their respective fields, a national reputation, etc.</p>

<p>That being said, there are also severe drawbacks. Like many other large public universities, its reputation is largely derived from its phenomenal graduate programs. The undergraduate student body? Not particularly strong, particularly among in-state students. A Wisconsin resident of average intelligence can drift through high school and gain entrance into the UW with a B+/A- GPA and decent ACT. The acceptance rate is very high (above 50%, I believe). Additionally, Wisconsin accepts what I consider a ridiculous number of transfer students from community colleges and other state universities. There is even a “guaranteed transfer program” from the local community college whereby Madison is required to take transfers as long as a CC student’s GPA is above a very low bar. Taken in combination, these factors result in a pretty large contingent of unmotivated undergraduates. For some people, this is not a concern, but for me, it was one of the most important factors in selecting a college. I wanted to be surrounded by vibrant intellectual debate and students who were interested in their studies beyond the confines of the classroom. I found that most Wisconsin students did not have this characteristic.</p>

<p>The upside to the large student body, of course, is that while the percentage of exceptional students is not that high, in raw numbers it translates to quite a few. Seeking them out, on the other hand, can be difficult.</p>

<p>My own conclusion was that Madison would be an excellent choice for graduate school but an unexceptional choice for undergrad. This is obviously nothing more than my opinion and should not be taken as anything else. I am not trying to convince your son not to go to Madison, I’m just giving the perspective of a person who closely looked at it (as my in-state option) but decided it was not rigorous enough.</p>

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<p>Somebody with a handle “OHKID” saying GoBlue? There is so much wrong with that picture! LOL!</p>

<p>To the OP, both schools are good, but I think Wisconsin is a better overall option.</p>

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<p>And to be fair, this could also be said about Ohio residents and MU:</p>

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<p>^^^I believe you are confusing the University of Michigan (MU as you call it) to the University of Ohio State (tUOS), as a famous collegiate quarterback attending there currently called it. Or perhaps Toledo Univesity is what you’re thinking of? In the meantime, back to reality, most OOS admits to Michigan have well over a 3.85 GPA and the acceptance rate is way below 50 percent, even from Ohio.</p>

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<p>“Somebody with a handle “OHKID” saying GoBlue? There is so much wrong with that picture! LOL!”</p>

<p>Not really Alexandre. There are a lot of Michigan fans in Toledo and throughout Ohio, excluding “Toledo” who I just quoted above. Can you blame them? I know from previous posts that OHKID really wanted to go to school in A2, it’s just that it was unaffordable to him. He had to settle with Miami, which is a good school, but its no U-M.</p>

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<p>Excuse me, but I thought this discussion was about Miami University and University of Wisconsin? Someone keeps bringing up Michigan.</p>

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<p>Please excuse me for my ridiculous error. Lately I’ve been reading a lot of people calling U-M, MU and in a derogatory way. I totally forgot that MU stood for Miami, the original subject of this thread. I need to chill! :-)</p>

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<p>Bigp
What a ridiculous and unsupported bunch of pseudo-elite malarkey. If you bother to check the Wisconsin papers you will find many stories about how high the bar has become to get into UW from instate. It takes more than “average intelligence” to get a 3.7+ gpa in a tough college classes and a 28+ ACT which are the averages for instate (which BTW are slightly HIGHER than the OOS numbers). A 28+ ACT score places one in the top 8% in the US for test-takers which probably means in the 5% or better. MENSA requires a 29 ACT for membership. Hardly average. </p>

<p>As for transfers, the number is neither large (1200/yr.) nor are they unqualified. They actually graduate at a higher rate than freshmen entrants. The admit rate is well under 50%. </p>

<p>If UW wanted to drum up another 5000 applicants so they could reject them it would not be very hard. Many instate kids opt not to apply if they are unqualified as the numbers needed for admittance are well known.</p>

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<p>ChicagoBear - Son and I toured both schools last year and really liked them both. While UW may have the overall nod in terms of reputation/ranking, they are both fine schools with much to offer. I believe kids can get a great education at either. I think this is really where “fit” comes in - UW and Miami feel very different from each other! Son chose UW because he loved the “vibe” and feel and energy and size and setting of UW…the big sports, great music scene with lots of concerts, the lake(s), tons of restaurants, kids from all 50 states as well as a bunch of international students, etc… Academically he knew both were strong, but as an undecided student as far as major, he felt that he could explore just about anything he wanted at UW and know the program would be strong no matter the path he decided upon. He is not at all bothered by large classes and has taken advantage of prof. office hours, meeting with TA’s, and getting together with study groups as well as a tutor a couple of times when he felt he needed a little extra help. So, UW was just the perfect fit FOR HIM. Another kid (like my younger son who would be overwhelmed at a school like UW) would choose just the opposite. I am guessing that once your son has had the chance to visit both, the choice may become much clearer. </p>

<p>I take issue with Bigp’s assessment, although I understand it is his impression and opinion so UW is probably not right for him - the classes at UW have been plenty rigorous so far and the professors have been mostly strong. My son has found his peers to be uniformly bright - the extent to which students take advantage of opportunities for outside the classroom learning and debate varies, as it does at just about every school. And, while the acceptance rate may be higher than Bigp might like in terms of “competitiveness,” I believe MU’s rate is even higher so the point is moot for the purposes of this comparison. </p>

<p>Good luck! It is nice to have such terrific choices.</p>

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<p>The locations are no contest – Madison is one of the best places in the country to be a college student, no matter what your scene may be (sportsy, granola, political, fratty, whatever). Despite a pretty campus and smaller student body, being surrounded by cornfields and a good drive from Cincinnati can’t compare.</p>

<p>Speaking only for myself, I would not go to Miami unless I wanted to pledge a Greek organization. Yes, many people don’t, but it’s such an important focus there that I think you miss out on a great deal without it. At UW, join, don’t join, it’s no big deal wither way.</p>

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<p>You are correct, travelfun–I wasn’t trying to compare Wisconsin to Miami, as I have no personal experience with Miami. However, I would recommend any of the other four schools the OP mentioned over Wisconsin for the aforementioned reasons.</p>

<p>barrons, I have just two sources of information when it comes to Wisconsin: published statistics and personal experience. For one, You are right–I exaggerated to some extent with the ‘average intelligence’ statement. That being said, getting a 3.7+ in a typical WI public high school and a 28+ is not particularly difficult. Something along the lines of 25 students from my high school went to Madison. 22 of them are not students I would classify as notably intelligent or skilled. The other three attended not because they really wanted to, but because they couldn’t afford the better schools they’d gotten into. Nobody would classify Wisconsin’s environment as intellectual (on an undergraduate level). This is not a bad thing, but rather something that I think potential applicants should know. I just think people should be aware that WI’s excellent reputation comes from its graduate school.</p>

<p>I would contend that 1200 transfer students per year is a large amount, but again, that is just my opinion. Most truly selective schools have minuscule transfer acceptance rates because so few students drop out or transfer out. Your argument that transfer students have a higher graduation rate than incoming freshman is ridiculous–of course they do, once they get there they only have two years left, whereas freshman have four. I’ve seen quite a few kids from my HS who have transferred into UW and it shocks me that the best school in the state would take them.</p>

<p>I suppose I am just of the opinion that with so many different state schools to choose from, the best of the best should work hard to become a truly elite school. Cutting the size of the student body to eliminate the riffraff on the edges of the admit pool (both freshman and transfer) would go a long way, but the last walk I took down Breese Terrace on a football Saturday didn’t exactly reflect an intellectual and distinguished student body.</p>

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<p>I hope you shared your brilliant opinions with your 22 classmates. You are just a smug self-congratulating elitist. Very Un-Wisconsin.</p>

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<p>“A 28+ is not particularly difficult”</p>

<p>Only on CC…</p>