<p>I'm not sure if this has been on a previous thread or not, but i was wondering if anyone knows what the most prestigious public universities in the US are?</p>
<p>Some of them include (in no particular order)...</p>
<p>UC Berkeley
UCLA
Michigan (Ann Arbor)
Virginia
William & Mary
Wisconsin-Madison
UNC-Chapel Hill
Penn State
UIUC
UT-Austin
Florida</p>
<p>rutgers....</p>
<p>Top 10 in order for undergrad:</p>
<ol>
<li>UC Berkeley</li>
<li>UVA</li>
<li>Michigan/ UCLA</li>
<li>UNC/ William & Mary</li>
<li>Wisconsin-Madison</li>
<li>UT</li>
<li>Penn State/ Florida/ UIUC</li>
</ol>
<p>i 5hink michigan belongs above UVA, and its apparently a better feeder than any other public school</p>
<p>What about UCSD?</p>
<p>Heck, almost the whole UC system is worthy. Six in the top fifty, no other state can match that.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Heck, almost the whole UC system is worthy. Six in the top fifty, no other state can match that.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>of course not... the state of California alone boasts something like the 5th largest economy in the world. hence, it can fund several amazing universities.</p>
<p>I too think Michigan is the clear #2, all things considered.</p>
<p>I personally disagree and think that Virginia is where it belongs--I think it might even belong above Berkeley. But then again, I go to Virginia. :) I also thought about applying to both Berkeley (in-state) and Michigan but chose Virginia for the smaller size, more comfortable feel, and greater opportunity to interact with professors. I know people will want to argue with me on these points but I did a lot of research and have seen from personal experience that I made the right choice for me. As a Californian I have many friends who went to Berkeley and none of them have had the kinds of opportunities available to Virginia students. Many find themselves lost in a maze of red tape that I have never seen at UVA. I also felt the Virginia had the greatest campus atmosphere for me, personally. But I think Michigan's sheer size might keep it from rising past UVA, though I wouldn't be surprised if it did in the USNWR rankings.</p>
<p>I think UVA is more revered than Michigan, but Berkeley is "it"</p>
<p>Semiserious, interaction with professors at Michigan is very frequent and easy. It is a myth that large state universities do not have excellent professor-student relations. Statistically speaking, Michigan's classes are as small as UVAs and the student to faculty ratio at both scools are almost equal. Whether Michigan is better than UVa or ther other way around is a matter of opinion, but in terms of student to faculty interaction, the tw schools are pretty much identical. It's not like UVa is a LAC and Michigan is impoverished state school with no funds to provide undergrads with the necessary attention.</p>
<p>At any rate, the OP is asking about prestige and recognition. When it comes to prestige and overall reputation, I think the historic peer assessment score is very telling.</p>
<h1>1 University of California-Berkeley 4.8/5.0</h1>
<h1>2 University of Michigan-Ann Arbor 4.5/5.0-4.6/5.0</h1>
<h1>3 University of California-Los Angeles 4.3/5.0</h1>
<h1>3 University of Virginia 4.3/5.0</h1>
<h1>5 University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill 4.2/5.0</h1>
<h1>5 University of Wisconsin-Madison 4.2/5.0</h1>
<h1>7 Georgia Institute of Technology 4.0/5.0</h1>
<h1>7 University of Illinois-Urbana Champagn 4.0/5.0</h1>
<h1>7 University of Texas-Austin 4.0/5.0</h1>
<p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Ivies%5B/url%5D">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Ivies</a></p>
<p>Indiana???</p>
<p>Indiana is excellent, but not quite as strong as those schools mentioned above. I'd compare Indiana to UCSD, Minnesota, PSU, Maryland, Purdue, UDub and several other top publics, but it is not quite up there with the likes of Wisconsin, Texas or Illinois and it is definitely not at good as Cal, Michigan or UVa.</p>
<p>Michigan and UVA is a toss-up in my book depending on major and career path. UVA wins on "undergrad" components like alumni network and undergraduate focus, Michigan wins on research reputation and most "vocational" programs (engineering for example).</p>
<p>Slipper, Michigan's alumni network can be matched...but not beaten. You completely underestimate Michigan's alumni network, which is generally regarded as oen of the most powerful on Earth.</p>
<p>Alexandre, you think UIUC and Wiscy are THAT much better than Indiana? I knwo theyre better, but are we talking like a ton?</p>
<p>They are not much better, but I think they are significantly better nevertheless. But it really depends on what one wishes to study. For example, for Business, Indiana is at least as good as UIUC or Wisconsin. In Music, Indiana is unbeatable. But overall, I just don't think IU is quite there yet.</p>
<p>IU is growing fast though. I think it will make the top 50 on USNWR within 10 years.</p>
<p>IU lacks engineering and medical schools at Bloomington. I think this hurts the overall image and ranking some. It also means much less research $$$ floating around to fund special improvements and overall resources.</p>