<p>I have to decide between UW Madison and UMN Twin Cities. I live in VERY small town in Wisconsin, less than 3,000 people. Madison would be slightly cheaper and closer to family. Minneapolis is a great city, though. I've visited both, but Minnesota only briefly. I plan on majoring in Psychology, but I want to do Pre-Med studies as well and go to medical school after my undergraduate. </p>
<p>Would I have more opportunities for research at one? </p>
<p>Would I have better med school or job opportunities after graduation at one?</p>
<p>and Which would be a better atmosphere in your opinion?</p>
<p>To sum up the millions of postings that have debated this topic:</p>
<p>If you want a big school in a city, go to MN.</p>
<p>If you want a big school in a suburb, go to Wisc.</p>
<p>Academics are pretty much equal. The only real difference is environment. Minnesota has a big city feel while Wisconsin has more of a suburban campus feel. Minnesota is more about bars, fine dining, clubs and museums. Wisconsin is more about sporting events, local bars, frats and house parties. There is obviously overlap, but these are two very different environments.</p>
<p>This is a popular topic. I would suggest reading the links informative provided, they provide every insight possible. I would make one general comment, if the cost at Wisconsin is cheaper, I might lean more towards your in state option considering you are thinking about
attending medical school. They are both terrific options.</p>
<p>Umm no informative is wrong on a couple things.</p>
<p>1) The drinking scene is not mostly bars and clubs at Minnesota. Yes those things are easily available. But, until you’re 21 or even then, it’s mostly house, apartment, and fraternity parties.</p>
<p>2) Madison’s campus is not really suburban considering it is adjacent to downtown Madison and the square.
-IMO when I walk on Wisconsin’s eastern part of the campus I feel like I’m more in the city than I do when walking at Minnesota’s campus. However, Wisconsin has the Lakeshore area. Minnesota’s nature alternative would be the St. Paul campus. Gorgeous.</p>
<p>Both schools are research powerhouses. I don’t know how Wisconsin’s Psych program is (probably good), but I do know ours is regarded as one of the best in the world. Research opportunities here are very prevalent. Both have good reputations for Med School. I wouldn’t let that sway you one way or the other.</p>
<p>As far as atmosphere goes, I don’t know what you prefer. Generally (yes this is generalizing a lot) Minnesota has more affluent students from the suburbs and my friends who visit from Madison note the overall “higher class” demeanor of a lot of the students here. Both schools will party. Minnesota has a lot more alternatives for the non-drinker than Wisconsin does. Overall, Wisconsin will have a larger sense of school pride (due heavily with its recent success over the past couple decades in football, basketball, and hockey), but you will definitely still see maroon and gold pride here.</p>
<p>FYI I came from a very small town in Wisconsin (smaller than yours) and absolutely love it here. Let me know if you have anymore questions and I’ll be glad to help!</p>
<p>UW has an outstanding psychology dept that is the #1 research dept in the US. Also an excellent teaching dept.
Most rankings place UW significantly higher overall.
UW has a more national student and placement base.</p>
<p>Both my parents attended UW-Madison. My mom majored in Psychology. They both said that it was hard to get used to being at a big school; however, they both enjoyed their time there. From what I’ve heard, the Psychology Department at UW-Madison is very good. Plus, being a Wisconsinite, I couldn’t stand being a Gopher. Go Badgers!</p>
<p>The latest USNews grad rankings had Minnesota and Wisconsin tied at #8 for psych.
The 1995 NRC grad rankings had Minnesota at #7 and Wisconsin at #16 for psych.</p>
<p>Both schools are outstanding in this area. I don’t think you’d regret either choice from that perspective.</p>
<p>Both are very good state flagships and more than sufficient for med school. My source for that claim would be the general CC consensus opinion on the influence of prestige (or lack thereof) in med school admissions. Given that both psych programs are well-known, I don’t think you’d see any trouble in any case.</p>
<p>Minnesota is in the heart of a vibrant metro area with 3.5 million residents. Wisconsin is in a booming small city pushing the upper limits of the “college town” designation with almost 600k residents. I personally think these are two of the nicest cities in the country in their respective categories. Which did you like more when you visited?</p>
<p>You will see some strong opinions on both sides of this issue. These opinions can provide some very valuable information, but bear in mind that many posters have strong personal biases. I’ll disclose mine here: I applied only to Minnesota and it is currently one of my top choices, though there are still others on the table. I do have a lot of respect for Wisconsin and only chose not to apply because of the lack of OOS scholarships. Don’t take “facts” as truth without cites to back them up.</p>
<p>Why would Madison be cheaper? My understanding is that under the tuition reciprocity agreement, Wisconsin residents pay the same tuition to the University of Minnesota that they’d pay to the University of Wisconsin. Books should be the same, room & board is very similar, hard to see why personal/incidental expenses would be much different.</p>
<p>OK, I see, Minnesota charges a few mandatory fees that aren’t included in tuition. Still, Minnesota’s COA for a Wisconsin resident is within $1400 of Wisconsin’s. That shouldn’t be a deal-breaker. There’s little to choose from here given your intended major and long-term career plans. I’d say go with your gut preference.</p>
<p>Plus, we have the Wisconsin Higher Education Grant and the Wisconsin Covenant. I’ll check it out after I know how much the state of Wisconsin could give me and compare it to how much Minnesota could offer. Im hoping it’ll be pretty comparable like you say because I don’t like having to base a college decision on money. Thanks!</p>
<p>bclintonk- The reciprocity deal is that residents of MN/WI pay the higher of the two options when they cross the border. Minnesota’s IS tuition is ~10k and Wisconsin’s is ~8k (I believe), so going to MN would be about 2k more for WI residents. For MN residents it’s the same either way. Shouldn’t be a deal breaker for anyone though.</p>
<p>Go to undergrad at UW and med school in Minnesota. Campus life in Madison is more exciting than Minneapolis. UW also is higher ranked academically.</p>
<p>Madison is no metropolis, but someone seeking a suburban environment would be very disappointed there. It feels like a cool city neighborhood, not like a suburb.</p>