UW-Madison Student Culture

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Wisconsin
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I applied this fall to the University of Wisconsin early action, but, as I live in the DC area, I haven’t been able to visit yet. I think I would love Madison, and it is a great school in all three of the different things I am potentially considering majoring in, and It overall seems like the kind of place where anyone would be happy. It seems like the whole package in a lot of ways and is one of my top choices, but I’m having a hard time figuring out how I would fit into the school culture.

For one, I’m a gay girl, and, though I’m not at all worried about being accepted there and I don’t really see this as a huge facet of my personality, I am interested in making a few friends that I could have this in common with. I don’t think I’m not really the type that would want to use a school’s LGBT center (or equivalent) for social purposes, simply because I don’t particularly want it to be a defining factor in my friendships with people. Would it be relatively easy to meet other gay people without seeking them out so explicitly?

Also, I sort of have a style and personality that fits more into the trendy/progressive culture of where I live. I know the fraternity/sorority presence at the school is low, but I also get the feeling that everyone sort of acts like they’re in a fraternity anyway (with the football culture and everything). It all seems exciting to me, but I’m definitely more of a books and coffee shops and sweaters kind of person than a tailgating one most of the time.

My last concern has to do with the whole “sconnies vs coasties” culture at the school. I would like to think that I’m not as pretentious and stuck up as everyone seems to think coasties are (I would be using the GI bill so I would only pay in-state tuition), but I wonder if I would feel like I stuck out too much if I tried to fit in with the Wisconsin kids. Would I be able to find a place within that culture, or would I have more luck with the other OOS kids that might be more like me? This would be more of an issue if I got in when choosing a dorm, but it’s something I’ve been thinking about. Are all of the coasties really as spoiled and nasty as people say they are?

I’m sorry if any of this feels like I’m stereotyping the students or school, and I would love to be corrected on any misconceptions I have. I don’t really know anyone who’s ever been to the school, so pretty much everything I know about it comes from somewhere on here or another website. I’m just trying to figure out if this is somewhere I could fit in and be happy. Even if you don’t have specific answers to the things I’m asking, I would be so grateful for any input anyone has about the school culture in general. For all of the information out there about UW, there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot about what kind of people the students are.

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I’ll try to answer your questions. My H went to UW-Madison for undergrad, as did his sister who is 10 years younger. I went there for grad school. We live 45 minutes away from UW-Madison. My D is a freshman and chose to go to the West Coast for college, but has several HS friends who are freshmen at UW. She spent a night with friends in one of the UW dorms over Thanksgiving. All 3 of our neighbor’s kids went to UW, etc.

The first thing I would say is UW is so big I’m not sure there really is a dominant culture. Yes, the sports fans are pretty fanatic, but there are just as many people who could care less about sports. The Greek system does not dominate the culture at all, but a friend’s daughter is in a sorority there and is very happy.

Ok, now let me get to your specifics. UW is very LGBTQ friendly, as is Madison. I don’t think you would have any trouble finding other LGBTQ students who, like you, don’t necessarily want to join an LBGTQ organization. And I think you’d find plenty of straight students who would see you as the unique person that you are and not as “my gay friend”.

There are lots of books/coffee shop/sweater students. In fact, all of my D’s HS friends who go there as well as my neighbor’s 3 kids are in the books/coffee shop/sweater crowd and may attend a sports game or two, but don’t have a strong interest in sports.
However, I wouldn’t call the UW student body trendy, though they are progressive. Wisconsin overall is pretty provincial and even our largest city, Milwaukee, is not very trendy, though it does have some up-and-coming neighborhoods by Midwestern standards. Keep in mind that most of Wisconsin is composed of rural/farming areas or small “cities”. (I’m guessing that a town of 35,000 that constitutes a city in Wisconsin would not meet your definition of a city.) You’re going to run across Sconnies who didn’t have a single person of color in their high school class, who have never eaten hummus, who have never been out of the upper Midwest, etc. On the other hand, students who want to stay in their rural/small city Wisconsin bubble generally don’t choose Madison and attend one of the lesser-known UW’s instead. The rural/small city students who choose Madison generally do so because they have the curiosity and desire to experience something that is very different than the rural/farming area or small city where they grew up. For example, my husband’s parents grew up on dairy farms and he was raised near his grandparents in a very rural area. He was the oldest of 3, the first in his family to go to college, and he realized as a high school student that he was an atheist liberal growing up in a very Catholic, Republican part of the state. He chose UW because he sought like-minded people.

This leads me to your final question. As you may have guessed by now, I am not a native Wisconsinite. Having lived in several states and countries, I can honestly say Sconnies and upper-Midwesterners in general, are some of the nicest people you will ever meet. I think because Wisconsinites are so nice, and because most of them don’t live in a big city, they mistake big city assertiveness for rudeness. Also, Wisconsinites aren’t very materialistic and don’t get very hung up on prestige. So when my uncle from L.A. visited and, upon seeing a Mercedes, said “what’s the point of owning a Mercedes here?” that didn’t sit well. From what you have shared about yourself, I don’t think you would be regarded as a coastal elite and I think Sconnies would welcome the opportunity to learn about you and what life is like for you in DC.

I do wonder if Madison would be too small for you, though (not the university, the city). When I first moved there, I refused to call it a city because it was too small to fit my definition of a city. It is not going to have many of the things you are accustomed to. Neither is Milwaukee. You would have to go to Chicago to get what I think you would feel is a true city experience. On the other hand, if what you are craving is green spaces, bike paths, lake shores, friendliness, happy people, and just enough big city offerings when it comes to shopping, restaurants, entertainment, etc., to make do, I think you might be very happy here. You should also be prepared for severe winters.

As far as other universities in the upper-Midwest that might be a good fit, my D actually preferred U of Minnesota-Twin Cities over UW-Madison because the campus is more urban-it’s right in Minneapolis-and the Twin Cities are trendier and larger than Madison. U of MI-Ann Arbor has more of an Ivy League/East Coast feel, from what I understand, so that may be more like what you’re used to.

Best of luck with your college search and thank you for your service (you mentioned the GI bill).

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Parent of UW grad – we live in the midwest, OOS, but are originally from the east coast. My kid found the whole “sconnie vs. coastie” thing kind of silly and overblown. He had lots of friends from both coasts as well as Chicago – many Chicago area kids choose Madison over Urbana Champaign.

As @NolaCAR said - UW is large enough that there is no dominant culture. Sure, there is a bar scene, and tailgating, but there is a huge foodie culture, an alternative/progressive culture (State Street is the home to just about everything) – really, whatever a student is looking for. There is the bustle (relatively) of Southeast neighborhood dorms, and the calm retreat of Lakefront dorms. Academics are as serious as a student wants – the faculty is unbelievable. You might find Chadbourne interesting as a first year dorm, it is a learning community, and has the reputation as more progressive/alternative than the big “party” dorms of Sellery and Witte.

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Ooops, reading what I wrote, I should also add that my kid had many Wisconsin (and Minnesota) friends – my point was, there is a lot of blending!

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Do not worry at all about things- as posted above. The campus is large with so much going on that you don’t need a surrounding big city to be entertained. Liberal city and those from conservative areas get exposed to a lot. If you do not try to pretend where you come from is so much better et al (have “airs”) you will get along fine with the instate students. Check out the LGTB stuff on the UW website and dorm site for info. Don’t worry about football and other sports- you can ignore them. Large enough student body that there is a lot of diversity in how students spend their time.

btw- there is tuition reciprocity with Minn so plenty of both at each school. Choose UW because of the top tier academics and potential majors’ required/available courses. You will find UW alumni all over the country (and world).

Every area is provincial. New Yorkers, Washington D.C.ers… Do not worry about being “trendy”- who cares? Be your own person. Getting away from what those locals consider the center of the universe can be an eye opener. There is plenty of life away from the east coast- and intellectualism as well. Everyone has a different UW experience- my son and I did, and not just because of it being different generations. College is not HS where everyone knows and perhaps worries about what others wear/do/think… You make your own experiences and UW has a wide variety that appeal to different types. There are also so many different courses to take in addition to those for any major.

Short answer- don’t worry about the social scene. You will find like minded people. Go for the best academic experience.

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Do you actually live in DC or are you in NoVA or Maryland? You may have more in common with Madison than you think depending on how you answer that question. I live on the EC now but used to live in Chicago and have been to Madison many times. My husband is a grad. It’s a great city - you’ll be fine.

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@lastone03 I live in Nova, it’s just usually more recognizable to say the DC area.