<p>I plan on majoring in Biochemistry. Wisconsin is better than Ohio in Biochem by 50 ranks (Wisconsin is #8 and Ohio, #58). And the Wisconsin Biochem program has its own building which of course comes with the side of a Nobel Peace Prize laureate and many staff on some prestigious science association that few can get into. Meanwhile, Ohio's staff aren't that famous (I believe only a couple are on that prestigious science association) and the department doesn't compare to funding of Wisconsin (I've visited both departments, I got a free shirt from Wisconsin's Biochem department :D) Research opportunities seem plentiful in both areas though I get the feeling it's easier to get in Ohio State's Columbus area.</p>
<p>After getting my degree, I plan on going into Graduate School (Hopefully a good one)</p>
<p>My dilemma is money. I have to pay full tuition in Wisconsin which after the miscellaneous costs comes to about 30k a year. Meanwhile, in Ohio comes to around 20k a year after all those other costs plus tuition. My parents can pay for 60k. And I'm really icky about being in debt, especially the prospect of having 60k in debt after attending Wisconsin as opposed to 20k for attending Ohio (Somewhat less since I'll be working). </p>
<p>Most of the real life peer pressure is directing me into the "Going into a decent school for less money because it doesn't matter". So the ultimate question is this: Is it worth to going into a undergrad program that's 50 ranks higher for 40k more bucks?</p>
<p>Where you go for undergrad doesn't matter. People only look at the name of your grad school.</p>
<p>So if money's an issue, save the $40k at Ohio State and go to a big-name grad school.</p>
<p>(EDIT: Of course, Ohio State isn't a bad school anyway...)</p>
<p>I've read on another thread that if you plan applying to big name grad school, having been in a better undergrad program gives you more lee-way in terms of GPA since it's supposedly a more challenging program.</p>
<p>And I still wonder about how much I can learn in a 8 program as opposed to a 58 program.</p>
<p>I agree with World Changer. I think you will get a fine education at OSU. After that, you can look for prestige in graduate schools based on exactly what you want to study.</p>
<p>Honestly, fields like biology (and by extention, biochem), are fields that are going to solid at any school, since they're such popular majors. Sure, some programs may have more prestige than others, but really, they're all going to be good.</p>
<p>Same with subjects like History and English.</p>
<p>"Honestly, fields like biology (and by extention, biochem), are fields that are going to solid at any school, since they're such popular majors. Sure, some programs may have more prestige than others, but really, they're all going to be good."</p>
<p>Hmm... ok. But how much will the prestige help me in getting into a good graduate program?</p>
<p>EDIT: Oh Yeah, I'm in the honors program for Ohio but not for Wisconsin.</p>
<p>Bump for more opinions.</p>
<p>The honors college at OSU is really nice because of benefits like priority scheduling and a sort of mentoring atmosphere. For what it's worth, I'm a humanities student who chose OSU honors over some top liberal arts schools and I'm glad I made that choice.</p>
<p>I really don't think going to Wisconsin will be the big tipping factor in grad school admissions - even if it is, I doubt it'll make a large enough difference to justify going into debt. I would choose Wisconsin because you feel it's a better fit and not because of how you think it'll benefit you for grad school admissions.</p>