I am a senior in high school in Minnesota with a weighted GPA of 4.2 and an ACT score of 29. I am planning on going to medical school as a pediatric doctor. Having in state tuition for both UW Madison and UW Lacrosse has spiked my interest in these schools as well as their great reputations. I have a few questions regarding these colleges.
Will both schools prepare me for medical school? (I am aware my preparedness mostly reflects on myself, but I am wondering more along the lines of the strength of each school's science departments and/or premed advising.)
UW Madison worries me in that the school size is very big and I want to avoid as many weed out classes as possible. At UW are there a lot of weed out classes? If so how can I avoid them?
UW Madison is more in my score range, but if I was to attend UW Lacrosse would it be a huge gap between me and other students there (since the average ACT is a few points lower) or do many people with scores like mine attend UW LAX
Will the partying be too much of a distraction??? I am not much of a party person and I want to avoid peer pressure and all the sorts so I can focus on my career path, yet still have an enjoyable time in college.
If you could answer any or all of these questions that would be greatly appreciated. If you have any other advice on these two colleges or anything else to add I would appreciate that as well.
Not knowing each school enough to make a comment of their activities. But I can answer your question in general.
UWis is a great school for premed, it does not matter which campus you go, what is important is that you must maintain a high GPA. For premed, you will find weed out classes in all schools. Specific to your questions:
Yes both school will prepare you to med school, if you have high enough GPA.
All schools have a lot of weed out classes, the trick for a premed is to select a school that you are the top 25% of the entering class. You will likely to succeed in getting the higher GPA and less chance to be weed out.
Med school do not care where you went to school, they care if you have a high GPA AND Mcat.
4, You will find partying everywhere you go, you just don't have to participate. You will find your friends in any school that dislike partying.
Go to the school you think you will get the best education at. UW-La Crosse is a top school of choice for WI residents not going to UW-Madison (UW). You will likely find many top tier students there. However, UW-Madison is the flagship with so much more to offer.
UW has many versions of various science courses- such as chemistry courses. You would take the course appropriate for your interests and background. Excellent Honors Program and opportunities to do undergrad research. An A from UW would mean more, but not all will get the A.
Any college will do for medical school. You need to figure out probable majors and decide which school(s) have the most to offer. You need a plan B- something else you are passionate about- since less than half of the college freshmen who have the premed intention (it is NOT a major) will go to medical school.
I was an Honors Chem major at UW eons ago who became a physician. I was surrounded by my intellectual peers. A large school offers so many more possible courses to take outside the medical school requirements. College is for your education, not just a step for medical school. Also- you find your smaller groups within the large numbers so you should not be intimidated by the numbers. Plus- it does not matter what others do, there will be plenty of nonpartiers to socialize with.
Peer pressure is a HS thing. College students, especially where there are many students, do not care what others do. You may want to consider the social milieu differences between the flagship and other state schools. It is not just an academic peer group situation- you will find good students at both but the overall academic tone. NO to the party thing at UW. Not sure of the La Crosse situation- will most people be involved in the same activities there?
Do you want to challenge yourself and meet a more diverse (ie OOS, foreign) group? Do you want to play it safer and more likely be able to get all A’s? You know yourself better than we can. Some people get top grades because they worked hard. Some take less rigorous courses and study halls to achieve this. Some become bored and don’t study as hard to get top grades as they might when they need to study harder. Do NOT look at percentages or raw numbers who get into medical schools- look at the environment where YOU will thrive.
Premed is an intention- schools will have online and other info but your advisor will be in your major. You are in charge, no advisor is. There is no “science department” in college- there are many specific fields of science with their own departments. You need to figure out what major (nonscience works just as well except you will also need a fair number of science classes that will use up your electives) interests you. Maybe one of several biology related majors is your thing. Maybe history, literature, math or any one of the myriads of possible majors most interests you. Physicians come from diverse backgrounds.
Bottom line. This fall apply to both flagships and UW-Lacrosse et al. Next spring make your final decision based on where you get in. For now do not worry about things. As you research colleges and such you will discover how things work. There will be a huge understanding once you are on a college campus. This summer you can look at various universities’ premed info on their websites. You will learn a lot about how things work in today’s world.
I object to the thought that schools purposefully “weed out” students. Not all schools try to let the majority get top grades- they offer a more rigorous course than many and expect students to learn more material to get an A. Most people are average, too many can’t be at the top or it weakens the term. There is a reason medical schools have weighted some schools more than others.
OP- decide where you will get your best education. That will include where you like being. This will enable you to do your best and enjoy the academic and social journey. Assume you can rise to the challenge and be one of the top students. Also do not be so much in pursuit of the almighty gpa that you bypass courses you may not get the A in. Use your college experience to broaden your horizons. It is so much more than a stepping stone to medical school. What if, despite choosing the “easy school” you do not get into a medical school? What regrets will you have for missing interesting courses because they might lower your gpa? btw- expect to get lower grades than in HS.
I wonder if the percent of students getting an A is higher in many of the Honors classes because students who take them expect to do more work. Some will be marginal for them and perhaps should have taken a different version. But- at UW the regular intro chemistry is also known to be difficult. Not for weeding out but for offering a demanding amount of material/concepts to be learned. Consider the standard when deciding where to go. btw, medical school is not difficult for concepts to be understood but rather for the volume of material to be covered in a limited time.
Getting to the point - if your stats are an accurate reflection of where you are now academically I think you would be eaten alive at UW-Madison in pre-med. If partying will distract you from the goal, you won’t succeed anyway. Between the two choices, were I you and my absolute goal was medical school, I would pick UW-Lacrosse. If you have ~4.0 and feel unchallenged, then transfer. Otherwise, try to be one of the best premed students there.
I disagree with the advice of going where you will get the best education. I would say that you should go where you can get an adequate education while excelling in the the pre-med curriculum and incurring the smallest debt possible. If you do become a pediatrician, you will not someday fret that the 100 level anthropology class at UW-Madison was incrementally better than the one at UW-Lacrosse. The reality is that most of the non-premed classes that you take will be fairly basic except for one or two areas of interest. Any school should be able to satisfy that at the undergraduate level.
Premed education is essentially a commodity which is offered at any university. You have core classes in which you should get ~A’s and you have core competencies which are tested on the MCAT. Go wherever you will be able to succeed with those two primary goals. Realize that with your stats you are starting at the bottom of the pool of people who go on to matriculate at a medical school. You need to succeed from the beginning to develop your confidence and improve your chances.
Most importantly, apply to more than two colleges.
All MN and WI public colleges are at in-state cost for you, which is an amazing opportunity. Apply to several visit, ask questions in various departments.
Run the NPC on private colleges too - they can cost the same as public universities or even less depending on their scholarships. The NPC will tell you if they may be affordable.
Remember that more than half of would be physicians entering college will NOT go to medical school. Get a good education for yourself, not only to become a physician. Medical students come from a myriad of colleges with different experiences- you are so much more than just a potential physician. Do not have regrets decades later because you chose a school just to get good grades. Have a plan B- a field you would be happy with other than the MD degree. btw- you will discover so much more about possible fields in the wider college world. btw- choosing a school because you think it will be easy can backfire. You can get distracted even at a small school and underestimate the work required.
A UW student can have an excellent social life without being a partier. Will it be easier to be studious at UW or UW-LC? Will it be easier to find like minded peers at either school?
Consider proposed majors (premed only being an intention, not a major). Which school has the ones high on your list- perhaps both. What are the degree requirements and the available courses? Which campus can you see yourself at? Be sure to visit both in the fall when students are on campus. Also visit other schools. If the place bugs you or feels comfortable that can make the difference in how well you do. You will do your best when you are happy where you are.
What is your unweighted gpa? With your stats and being OOS I think UW-Madison is a reach for you. I’m not even sure about your chances of getting into CBS at UM-Twin
Cities. CBS’s admissions are more competitive than everything there except engineering. I think UW-LaCrosse would be a good fit for you academically. It wouldn’t be as cutthroat. If you make it through the weedout classes (and I’m thinking mainly of chem) and have good grades, you could always apply to transfer to UW-Madison or UM-Twin Cities. I think LaCrosse is an attractive college town for its size. Next to Madison I think it is the best college town in WI. As for partying, there is a lot of it at both Madison and LaCrosse. However, I know several students who are currently sophomores at both campuses and they choose not to party heavily and they say they don’t feel pressured to party and that there are plenty of other kids who party moderately or not at all. Having said all of this, why not apply to all 3 and see what happens?