<p>Nobody wants to be a bumble-bee (copied from the Steelers anyway) Really. Herkie scares little kids--they all love Bucky.</p>
<p>LOL! True, I do like Wisconsin's costume mascot - Bucky!</p>
<p><em>Much better than my alma mater's decrepit Oski. He's screaming for a makeover</em></p>
<p>Wow...Herkie is also the name of a cheerleading jump...Okaaay. You're right, barrons, I can see where he'd scare kids.</p>
<p>Barrons, It's Herky...not Herkie.</p>
<p>I apologize to all Bumble-Bee fans out there. And to Herky.
I do love the Iowa art museum--I drove all the way there to see their Pollock and some other very good American art.</p>
<p>A2Wolves, the "estimated" figures are not for tuition but for everyting else. Cost of dorms vary according to dorm and meal plana nd cost of books vary according to major and subjects taken. Miscelanious and transportation are also estimates. However, if you multiply $10,719 by 2, you get $21,438, which is virtually identical to the link I provided, which lists tuition at $21,010. If those $430 that much to you, you can add them on. However, in the end, the difference over four years is still not overwhelming. Yes, it is significant, but the point I was making is that Wisconsin is worth it. The OP would still pay roughly $110k to attend Iowa and $130k to attend Wisconsin. My analysis stants.</p>
<p>
[quote]
However, if you multiply $10,719 by 2, you get $21,438, which is virtually identical to the link I provided, which lists tuition at $21,010. If those $430 that much to you, you can add them on.
[/quote]
Is that not exactly what I pointed out in my post?</p>
<p>A2Wolves, I am not sure what your point is. You are missing the general consensus point of this thread. Whether Wisconsin is $3k or $5k more expensive to the OP on an annual basis does not matter. Like I said, Wisconsin at $130 over 4 years is a better value than Iowa for $110 over 4 years. So yes, Iowa is cheaper, but as a portion of the total cost, it is still not that significant and Wisconsin is a better overall choice. Of course, if the OP's family is in horrible financial shape, those $20k over 4 years could make a difference, but bickering over $10k when we are talking about well over $100k in costs incurred over 4 years is pointless.</p>
<p>UWisconsin-madison any given day!!</p>
<p>I think when you are giving "advice" to people, telling them the correct costs is important. So when incorrect costs are posted, they need to be corrected. Saying it is a $12,000 difference, then saying a $19,000 difference, and finally realizing that it is $22792 difference is important. When you make a statement that is off by $10,792 the OP needs to know that as $10,792 is a LOT of money especially for an applicant who has made it clear that finances are a concern. Telling people the correct costs is not "missing the point". Giving out incorrect information is "missing the point".</p>
<p>Funny how you call it "bickering". I guess that looking out for the best interest of posters is "bickering". If incorrect information keeps on getting posted, I will continue to "bicker", as I am here for the people.</p>
<p>A2Wolves, 22,792 a number you are adhering too that cannot be ascertained. I never used an exact figure as you did because I know that costs are hard to pin down. That is why I estimated. Initially, I underestimated the cost difference at $12k. I was wrong and corrected my estimate to $19k. I never argued that I was right in my initial claim and I immediately acknowledge my error. </p>
<p>The exact difference in total is impossible to track down because there are too many unknowns. As it stands, the approximate cost of tuition and room&board at Iowa is $close to $27k/year. The approximate cost of tuition and room&board at Wisconsin is close to $29k/year. Cost of books, medical expenses, food, transportation etc... are roughly the same at both. So in the end, there is a difference of roughly $2k between Wisconsin and Iowa. That is where I went wrong. I thought cost of attendence between Wisconsin and Iowa was roughly the same, and it wasn't. In addition to the $2k price difference, Iowa offered the OP a scholraship worth $3k/year. So all in all, Iowa is roughly $5k cheaper than Wisconsin to attend per year, or $20k over 4 years, give or take a couple. That is exactly what I have said in all my posts on this thread save my first one, which was admittedly faulty. </p>
<p>And still, I will stand by my initial point. Wisconsin at $130k is a better value than Iowa at $110k. Wisconsin is a better overall university, has a stronger alumni network and a more global reputation.</p>
<p>Nobody can know what the REAL number will be as it is not possible to project the actual costs over the next four years.</p>
<p>As a student who has attended both universities, I think I'm pretty well equipped to answer the question. </p>
<p>Generally speaking, Madison and Iowa are pretty similar. Large, Big 10 schools in the midwest with relatively diverse student bodies and close proximity to cool towns.</p>
<p>UW-Madison, however, is everything Iowa is times 10. It is a better academic school, a better college town, a better location and has a higher quality student body. Iowa is a fairly regional school, whereas Madison has a more national reputation. Getting into Iowa requires little effort...graduating in the top 50% of your class in the state of Iowa guarantees admission to U of I. </p>
<p>On the flipside, my sister was rejected (in-state) at UW-Madison with a 30 ACT and 3.9 weighted 3.7 unweighted GPA. This disparity really reflects itself in the quality of the average student. The average student at Madison is much smarter and hard-working than his or her Iowa cohort. Of course, there are brilliant students at Iowa and dumb students at Madison, but on average Madison trumps Iowa in this regard.</p>
<p>To sum up:</p>
<p>Both schools are generally similar, but Madison edges out Iowa in almost every category.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I know both Wiscosin-Madison and University of Iowa are not among the top colleges in the United States
[/quote]
Not sure how you got that impression. Let's look at some facts. Following are Wisconsin's graduate departmental rankings according to USNWR:</p>
<p>Math(14); ComputerSci(11); BioSci(15); Chem(7); Physics(16); EarthSci(15)
Econ(11); English(16); History(11); PoliticalSci(16); Public Affairs(14); Psycholog(9); Sociology(1)
Clinical Pyschology(1); Pharmacy(9); Social Work(12); Vet Medicine(5)
Education(12); Library & Info(11)
Engineering(15); Business(29); Medical/Research(27)/PrimaryCare(13)</p>
<p>Does it look like a university "not among the top" in the United States?</p>
<p>On a more personal note, here is a write-up posted on another discussion forum a few years ago. The author Matt graduated from Wisconsin and was then a history PhD student at the University of Virginia. Here's what Matt has to say about his experience at UW-Madison:</p>
<p>"Madison is a truly awesome place to be. It is the perfect combination of an intellectual academic school and a hedonistic social school. It is very similar to Michigan in this respect. UW-Madison is unique in that both its liberal arts and its sciences are both extremely highly regarded. UW-Madison has over 40 programs that are ranked in the top 10 nationally. In terms of its pure academic reputation it is among the best in the nation. Almost all UW graduate programs are ranked very highly. Because UW it is so large and can accept a large number of students, and because it is in the Midwest as opposed to the east or west coast it is not as selective as some other schools that it competes or bests in terms of pure departmental rankings. Michigan also has this same problem when competing against the best from the east coast. The academic reputation of UW will help you in seeking a job, and especially in gaining entrance to a top graduate school.... </p>
<p>Downtown Madison lies between two very large lakes, Lake Mendota and Lake Menona. The campus of UW lies along the shore of Lake Mendota. The Memorial student union is on Lake Mendota and there you can sit on the terrace, drink a beer, feed the ducks, and watch the sailboats (weather permitting of course). UW-Madison has a very liberal campus, some people sarcastically refer to it Berkeley-North. There is a constant political dialogue on campus. In Madison you will see sit ins, protests, speakers getting booed off stage, legalize pot marches, socialists calling for revolution, and every other fringe opinion you can think of being expressed. I am a conservative person but I appreciate the liberal atmosphere because it leads to self examination and growth, which is important in a college atmosphere. I am currently at the University of Virginia in grad school and it is painfully clear how much there is to be said for a liberal campus atmosphere which we so sorely lack here. The UW campus is so large and the student body so diverse and open to anything that you can get involved in absolutely anything you have an interest in. State street is the street the runs from the edge of campus down to the Capital building marking the middle of the isthmus between the two lakes. It is a walking only street with TONS of bars, restaurants, shops, etc. It is a very cosmopolitan and fashionable area catering to very diverse interests and the real estate in the area is astronomically expensive (and unfortunately so are rents when you leave the dorms). Hardly any students drive in Madison as everything you could ever need is within walking distance. It is impossible to get parking from the university so if you decide you want a car you will have to pay for private parking running somewhere between $50-100 a month depending on your luck. I would say maybe 10% of students have a car (I had one since I was from Nebraska and had to haul my stuff back and forth). There are more bars on State Street and the side streets off of it than anywhere else I have been in the world except on Bourbon street in New Orleans (Dublin can't compare). Every night is a wild night on State Street. Everyone has a top 10 list of their favorite bars and these can be hotly disputed. The Capital square also has lots of great restaurants and bars. Halloween is totally wild where around 70,000 people take to state street dressed in every conceivable costume (don't bring children...). It is a crazy event that always ends with things being burned and police trying to stop things from being burned....The Mifflin block party is a similar event in the spring without the costumes, maybe not quite as big, but also probably even more out of control. Open house parties are all over. All you have to do on a weekend is walk around and pick the house with 100 out front people that suits you. DI athletics including Badger football and basketball are awesome if you like sports. </p>
<p>I just cannot express how much fun you will have living in Madison. It is always incredibly lively and there is more going on in Madison on a random Tuesday night than there is on most campuses on a Friday or Saturday. It is a very hedonistic place, but it is also a very intellectual place. Your professors will expect a lot from you. Most courses are graded on a strict curve. Personally I have found that many of my undergraduate classes at Madison were taught at a more advanced level than my graduate courses at UVA. Work Hard, Play Hard could definitely be the UW slogan."</p>
<p>I couldn't have said it any better.</p>
<p>Nice work. And pretty accurate too IMHO.</p>