<p>I'm seriously considering attending the University of Wisconsin at Madison. At this point, I've thoroughly investigated, including a formal campus visit. I'm also quite familiar with the area. The university appears to be everything I'm looking for, except for one thing...</p>
<p>It's important to me to have the option to work anywhere in the USA, and preferably internationally as well. However, at many state universities, the reputation and alumni networks tend to be concentrated in the state or possibly the surrounding area. So it's not always straightforward to find work in another part of the country. Is this a problem at Wisconsin? Or can a Wisconsin graduate find work anywhere in the USA?</p>
<p>In particular, it seems that many Wisconsin graduates head to Chicagoland after graduation. I lived there for years but would strongly prefer to avoid living there again. Do people wind up there because they want to? Or do alumni networks, campus recruiting, etc., cause a gradient in that direction which is difficult to avoid? (No offense intended to anyone from Illinois - this is just a matter of personal preference.)</p>
<p>On a related note, is it difficult for a Wisconsin graduate to find work in Madison after graduation?</p>
<p>Many prefer Chicago. I certainly wanted it over NYC or the east coast.<br>
Many more are staying in Madison as the jobs grow. It has passed Milwaukee as a place where grads go to work. There are UW grads working everywhere. There are around 4000 in the Seattle area.</p>
<p>I checked out the link posted and it looks like California has the third most alumni. Thats good to hear because I want to come back to CA should I attend UW and it would be nice to have a legitimate network. I was a bit worried that there wouldn't be many badgers out here, but it looks as though there are.</p>
<p>Thanks for your responses. This is helpful information - apparently the alumni network really does extend everywhere.</p>
<p>Regarding Chicagoland, I just wanted to make sure it was indeed that people wanted to go there, rather than it being the only major city where the alumni network and reputation extend or another such reason. Interestingly, there are fewer Wisconsin alums in Illinois than would be expected from the fact that about 9% of Wisconsin students are originally from Illinois.</p>
<p>I am an alumni in the SF Bay Area, the sixth largest concentration of Badger alumni in the country...there are nearly 10,000 Badgers here and we are well represented in technology and industry. Companies such as Intuit (Quicken), Cisco, Autodesk, Applied Materials, KLA-Tencor, H-P, and most recently Yahoo! have had Badgers leading them. There is an amazing work and social network of Badgers in most major cities in the country. In addition there are many alumni groups in major international centers. One thing that has become evident over time, the Badger network is far more active and loyal in supporting fellow grads than most university alumni groups...</p>
<p>Thanks for the input CDOne. I plan on majoring in Computer Science and working in the SF Bay Area after graduation. Thanks again for the reassurance.</p>
<p>Ahh, because it has been a leading university since the late 1800's?? It also does lots of useful research into things of international importance such as food science and bio sciences.</p>
<p>I am only one data point, but I am working on a Phd in microbiology at a very well respected institution. My wife is working in student services as an advisor. Like everything else, nothing is assured and where you go to college has little to do with your personal levels of motivation and ambition.</p>