UW-Madison v. UMich-Ann Arbor

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Wisconsin
1

<p>Let's hear your opinion-why should someone choose UW-Madison over UMich-Ann Arbor? Money is not much of an issue, since after scholarship $, the cost of both schools is comparable. They're both great schools in great college towns and from what I can see, they have more in similarities than differences. My son was accepted to both as an undecided LSA major. In addition to good academics, it's important to him to be able to get tickets to the football, basketball & hockey games. </p>

<p>Comments about ease of course registration, caliber of professors, workload, social life, popularity of intramural sports, ability to get tickets to the big games, and anything else you can think of that's worth comparing would be much appreciated!</p>

2

<p>michigan is a better school academically since they have ranked programs in almost every field, but wisconsin is also up there in academics... as for the sports... michigan has a dominant football team but that's about it... wisconsin has great teams in basketball and football from what i know...i would probably say that he should go to whichever school is closest to home</p>

3

<p>Michigan has more prestige but in many of the programs im interested in(economics, foreign language, political science) the schools are virtually identical.</p>

4

<p>wisc is better in soc than michigan</p>

5

<p>I've got kids at both, and they are similar. Here are a few thoughts:
1. Michigan seems a bit tougher academically. The kid at Michigan seems a bit more stressed about school.
2. Wisconsin seems a bit more laid back socially. Kid at Michigan is joining a frat to get more of a circle of friends, kid a Wisconsin will be living in an apartment with four others next year.
3. Football and basketball tickets much harder to get at Wisconsin. Several thousand freshman don't get season tickets, all upper classmen do. Freshman son paid $80 for a ticket (bought from another student) when Wisconsin was playing one of the lesser teams. All Michigan kids who want get football tickets. Basketball, as you might expect, is currently a very tough ticket to get at Wisconsin.<br>
4. School spirit at all sporting events great at both schools. At Michigan football, the student section is very active. At Wisconsin, they are the same, but the chants are more obscene. Make of that what you will.</p>

6

<p>Thank you Mythreesons. Your info is helpful. What year are you kids and what are their majors? Also, what state are you from? How about class registration? My daughter just graduated from Michigan and never had much trouble getting the classes she wanted. We heard that at Wisconsin it's quite common to get shut out of desired classes. Any experience with this?</p>

7

<p>My kids are out of state freshmen at both places, so the experience in some areas is limited. Neither kid has a major or any real departmental experience. The kid at Wisconsin did initially get closed out of economics this Spring, which I found surprising in that it's such a basic course. However, by watching the class list on the first day or two of the semester, he snagged an opening and got the exact class he wanted. There have been no big registration problems at Michigan yet.</p>

8

<p>Does Madison have registration priority based on credits?</p>

9

<p>You register based on the number of credits you have, not counting the current semester's credit load. Except for incoming students, who register at SOAR. So even if you have lots of AP credits, you still register the first time as a true freshman.</p>

10

<p>Does the same rule apply for transfer students?</p>

11

<p>Registration is based on class, Sr, Jr, So, Fr; class is based on accumulated credits- eg 0- 29? Fr etc. When you transfer I'm sure you get told which level you're at, but everyone else will have begun registering during the previous semester so you would not have any advantages. Remember, they can't let everyone jam the computers at once so there is an assigned time amongst each class for starting to sign up for classes. Of course you can start, make changes anytime after that. </p>

<p>BTW, sure beats going from building to building for each class you wanted, sometimes twice when conflicts arose, with the Fieldhouse and Red Gym, on opposite ends of campus, as start/end points- in January! Computers have definitely improved campus life.</p>

12

<p>UM poo-poohs new rankings but keeps eye on UW.</p>

<p>Look to bottom of article.</p>

<p><a href="http://media.www.michigandaily.com/media/storage/paper851/news/2007/01/25/Academics/U.Gets.Low.Marks.On.Prolific.Profs-2677314.shtml?sourcedomain=www.michigandaily.com&MIIHost=media.collegepublisher.com%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://media.www.michigandaily.com/media/storage/paper851/news/2007/01/25/Academics/U.Gets.Low.Marks.On.Prolific.Profs-2677314.shtml?sourcedomain=www.michigandaily.com&MIIHost=media.collegepublisher.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

13

<p>My daughter is a freshman at Madison and her lifelong best buddy from kindergarten is a freshman at Michigan. Both of them are in the honors programs. My daughter is doing the premed track and is having trouble getting classes for the next semester because many were full by the time her turn came to sign up. So now she has to wait for soph year. She will stay in Madison this summer and take some credits. Her friend at Umich is having no trouble getting classes that she wants.</p>

<p>Every student is guaranteed a ticket at Michigan football. In wisconsin, you are entered into a lottery for football and also for basketball. </p>

<p>Wisky was hockey NCAA champs last year. They ended up at the top of the big ten in football too. And currently ranked #2 in basketball.</p>

<p>The social scene is a little crazy at Wisconsin. Too much drinking and partying. Michigan students are much more focused on studies.</p>

<p>In my opinion, Michigan holds an edge in national prestige and academic rankings.</p>

<p>But in the end, it does not matter where you go to school, it all depends on what you do with that education and with the opportunities that you get.</p>

14

<p>How about intramural sports? I know that at UofM many kids participate. How about Wisconsin?</p>

15

<p>Is it generally harder to get into science classes, or does the problem of getting classes occur across the board?</p>

16

<p>I think UW will be adding more science and other high demand sections in the next year with the new budget. Meanwhile Michigan is suffering from massive auto job cuts and a bad economy. They will be lucky to tread water this year. the Governor has made that a priority. From his Budget Speech this week. </p>

<p>"UW
Many states will try to compete with us, but we have an unique and special advantage they'll never match: the University of Wisconsin. </p>

<p>Tonight, I propose a new investment in the University to produce more college graduates, more engineers, scientists, and nurses. We need more research, and more support for innovation that will be the cornerstone of our success. </p>

<p>This will be a major undertaking for the University and for the state, but the benefits will be wide and far reaching. </p>

<p>We'll expand enrollment from Green Bay to La Crosse to Oshkosh, Superior and River Falls, making the dream of college a reality for thousands more of our citizens. </p>

<p>From Parkside to Whitewater, and across the UW system, we'll expand financial aid, recruit more minority students, and provide additional academic help to those who need it. </p>

<p>We'll create a new Health Sciences major at Stevens Point, new opportunities for technical college students at UW-Oshkosh, improve services for adult students at Green Bay, strengthen student retention efforts at River Falls, and expand the liberal arts programs available at Superior. </p>

<p>In partnership with the UW-Platteville, we'll expand opportunities at UW colleges as well, like a new mechanical engineering degree at UW-Fox Valley, an electrical engineering degree at Rock County, and opportunities for hundreds more students throughout the state. </p>

<p>It's not only an investment in our students. It's an investment in our economy. We'll train more nurses and teachers in Oshkosh, more engineers in Platteville, and more biologists in Green Bay. </p>

<p>We'll fund an innovative partnership between Eau Claire, Stout, and the Chippewa Valley Technical College to produce more graduates in advanced disciplines like nanotechnology, biotechnology, and polymer engineering. </p>

<p>Early next year, we'll break ground on the Institutes for Discovery - without any ideological strings attached. Together, we'll launch a new and exciting era in which the University of Wisconsin-Madison will not only help create thousands of new jobs, but will help unlock cures to deadly diseases through biotechnology and stem cell research.</p>

17

<p>UW is great for runners, aside from the top div 1 sports there are both a running and track club- track club ran at a CC megameet (all ages thru college etc)- div 3 at Loyola along the lakeshore in Chicago last fall. Many other intramurals, check the website. There are facilities at both ends of campus. The Union's Hoofers has sailboats, kayaks etc available (in season).</p>

<p>re Science classes- depends on the course, there are several entry level courses in some fields, such as chemistry and physics. Try looking at courses you may want in the online Timetable- it will tell you how many spaces are available and if a course is open to freshmen; the semester started Jan 22 but adding/dropping may still be going on so you can see if a given section is full... Check the online catalog to determine which courses you want.</p>

18

<p>which school has a better undergrad poli sci dept. ?</p>

19

<p>I'm sort of in the same situation as your son and have visited both schools, and my advice would be to choose based on which campus you like better. Ann Arbor is sort of like the stereotypical suburban college town with a lot of trees and stuff. Wisconsin's campus is more unique because it sort of combines a suburban and urban enviornment as Madison has a sort of a mini downtown area (I'm from NYC). Personally, i also feel that Madison is more beautiful because it is sandwiched in between two lakes, however Ann Arbor is a pretty city too. Madison also has State Street which is like 5 blocks of cool stores and restaurants connecting the campus and the city. Ann Arbor has similar stuff but its not as concentrated.</p>

20

<p>Right now UM has a better Poli Sci dept as UW had to replace several top guys the last few years due to retirements. On average UM has been Top 5 and UW Top 10.</p>