<p>Hello,
Currently I have offers from both Wisconsin and University of Toronto, and I believe that the final choice is going to be between the two. I heard that Toronto's undergraduate life sciences program is good, but not as great as engineering. Wisconsin, on the other hand, has great reputation for their Grad school Microbiology program, and I am just wondering if the undergraduate microbiology program in CALS is just as reputable, since I haven't heard much from it. </p>
<p>Also, what is the research scene in the UW-Madison and the Madison area? I know that as an undergraduate, research opportunities are limited and I will have to work hard to grab a position, but I'd like to see more opportunities offered so I'll have more options. </p>
<p>By the way - I'm Canadian but my family is willing to pay OOS fees for Wisconsin if it prepares me better for grad school or jobs.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Madison has a an Undergraduate Research Scholars program that you can apply for when you go to SOAR. It’s a great opportunity from what I have heard because you can work one-on-one with faculty or in groups on research projects. I’m currently trying to transfer there because of the program. Research opportunities are definitely there for you and will look great if you want to go to grad school or professional school. I want to go to med school so Madison is in best interest right now.</p>
<p>Thanks, anoni76! Sounds good. However, I cannot help but wonder if my Canadian citizenship would prevent me from getting one of those scholarships or research opportunities. Is it going to be a significant drawback? </p>
<p>It’s not exactly a scholarship, just a program that you apply for. I’m guessing it’s like applying to get into an Honors program…only for research. I don’t think that you being from Canada would have anything to do with you getting into it. Like I said, you apply for it at SOAR so you have about as fair chance as anyone else that is admitted to UW Madison.</p>
<p>If you’re interested in learning more about it, here is the link to the homepage. </p>
<p><a href=“http://urs.ls.wisc.edu/”>http://urs.ls.wisc.edu/</a></p>
<p>How much does UW cost for you? Are you planning on grad school or med school? Toronto is inexpensive for a Canadian citizen. </p>
<p>Grad school is usually fully funded in a decent program. Med School is not. Getting into med school in Canada is much harder than in the US and UT also has some grade deflation that’s worth noting. </p>
<p>anoni76 - thanks, that was really helpful! URS a good program to look into.
ecouter11 - UW OOS fees are at about 24k so i say a bit more than twice than that of UofT’s. I’m planning on going to grad school instead of med school. I’m mainly asking this question because I was wondering if UW-Madison undergrad would prepare me better or get me on a better foot when I apply to grad school (for now, probably related to microbiology since it’s my biggest interest). Thanks for the tip about grade deflation! </p>
<p>I know that UofT has excellent medical research but I can’t attest fully to the UG experience. Life Sci at UT is a pretty large class.</p>