I am from India and I am admitted to both of these universities. I want to major in Mech engr, so which one is better?
Purdue is stronger in engineering than Wisconsin. I suggest you ask employers/associates which school they are more well aware of for mechanical engineering. I assume you will be employed eventually in India, so that is a very important factor to consider.
@rjkofnovi Thank You
Anyone??
really, you cannot go wrong with either school. which one will be cheaper? which one has a better reputation in India, as @rjkofnovi asked? Madison is a bit more of a fun college town, I’ve been told, than West Lafayette.
@jkeil911 Wisconsin is cheaper than Purdue. From India, it feels like everyone gets into Purdue. I mean I know more than 10 people from my locality who got into Purdue. But Wisconsin is hardto get in. Purdue offers a better engineering experience . I am totally confused between these two.
I would pick Wisconsin over Purdue just based on the quality of the campus. Purdue might have a slightly higher ranking in that field, but it probably will not make much of a difference.
seems like there’s no wrong choice, OP. This is just one of many big life decisions. You can do this.
@Zinhead Purdue ranked over UW that’s why I am getting confused. However, UW has better reputation than Purdue.
@jkeil911 Yes that’s true. But it costs lot for international students to study in USA thus I don’t want to make bad decision.
I can understand how you might be confused coming from India – the info. you have access to would seem to conflict in some areas. Overall, UW-Madison is a more well-rounded research university, with many departments that rank higher than Purdue. It also makes sense that Wisconsin is harder to get into as an international. The campus / town experience definitely leans in Wisconsin’s favor.
Purdue does excel in engineering and certain, specific STEM fields, but it is not significantly greater in engineering than Wisconsin; this depends on the sub-field (Wisconsin’s chemical engineering is very good, but for mechanical, Purdue gets an edge). Purdue’s job placement in mechanical engineering may be a bit better than Wisconsin’s, but I also think Wisconsin’s placement would be pretty strong as well.
Maybe you can make a list of the advantages you are looking for in a university experience, and compare. If you have specific questions about categories you are interested in, people on this board could then help you better. Also realize, these are very large, research-intensive universities. There is no “better” school in a general sense. You must do research yourself to discover which school is a better fit for your life and career goals.
no one wants to make a bad decision. that’s not a reason to not make a decision between these two good schools.
To follow up on anhydrite comments, UW Madison has an enrollment of around 43,000. It is spread out among a wide variety of academic majors, of which the sciences are a small part. It is the flagship university of the state of Wisconsin, and teaches most academic subjects very well.
In contrast, the state of Indiana split higher education between Purdue University and Indiana University. Indiana University concentrates in arts, while Purdue concentrates in sciences. Purdue has an enrollment of 38,000, but most of their students are enrolled in STEM majors. While Purdue will be higher ranked than Wisconsin in many STEM fields, since Purdue has to accept a great many more STEM students than Wisconsin to fill the classes, it is easier to gain acceptance to Purdue than Wisconsin.
On non-academic issues such as campus life, Wisconsin is considered to be better than Purdue. Also, if a student decides to switch to a non-STEM field, Wisconsin will offer more choices than Purdue. However, both are excellent academic institutions.
To follow up on anhydrite comments, UW Madison has an enrollment of around 43,000. It is spread out among a wide variety of academic majors, of which the sciences are a small part. It is the flagship university of the state of Wisconsin, and teaches most academic subjects very well.
In contrast, the state of Indiana split higher education between Purdue University and Indiana University. Indiana University concentrates in arts, while Purdue concentrates in sciences. Purdue has an enrollment of 38,000, but most of their students are enrolled in STEM majors. While Purdue will be higher ranked than Wisconsin in many STEM fields, since Purdue has to accept a great many more STEM students than Wisconsin to fill the classes, it is easier to gain acceptance to Purdue than Wisconsin.
On non-academic issues such as campus life, Wisconsin is considered to be better than Purdue. Also, if a student decides to switch to a non-STEM field, Wisconsin will offer more choices than Purdue. However, both are excellent academic institutions.
Well put Zinhead. OP, there is no bad decision here, they are each highly regarded. Madison is a great college town.
@anhydrite Thank you
@Zinhead You are right. I will try to figure out. By the way I am inclined towards UW Madison
@boneh3ad Can you give some suggestions? I saw your comment in similar post where overall and subject rankings contradicted.
The same thin I said elsewhere applies here: the engineering reputation trumps the overall reputation. That said, it’s not like Wisconsin is that far behind Purdue in the engineering rankings (which are flawed anyway). Really you can’t make a bad choice. They are both great.
As an international should I assume that you won’t have a chance to visit them?
@boneh3ad I wont visit any of them. The thing that scares me is that is it possible that I go to UW and be jobless…