Wisconsin vs. Penn State

[Anonymous]

Madison is consistently ranked among the top 10 most livable cities. State College is in the middle of nowhere and had Jerry Sandusky. You decide.

[Anonymous]

No way. Must be gaming the ranking system.

[Anonymous]

Growing up in the md Atlantic PSU was always considered a good state school. No one I knew ever discussed UW as an option. I would guess the converse is true in the Midwest. I was surprised to see the OP say they were surprised as I've always viewed them as roughly equivalent. As long as I can remember PSU has shown up in the lists of best value public schools.

Madison is a cute city. State College is really only there because the university is there. But as a student I'm not surfeit really matters that much since they're both such large schools they kind of become a world unto themselves.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No way. Must be gaming the ranking system.

guess WSJ is in their pocket too eh?

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704554104575435563989873060.html

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704358904575477643369663352.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Agreed. And I don't believe students at an elite NY prep applied to Wisconsin, but didn't even consider Penn State. Not even slightly believable.

NP here. It's definitely true. Wisconsin was the school you went to when you didn't get into Michigan or Cornell. Penn State was viewed as regional school like Maryland or Rutgers. Totally different league.

Too funny! I'm the person who wrote that about the elite NY prep school and I went to Cornell with Michigan as my second choice and Wisconsin as my safety.

(Also, I wasn't trying to be snotty. Some people would think it's a plus to not have a lot of NY kids.)

[Anonymous]

(Oops! Did the quote wrong.)

Too funny! I'm the person who wrote that about the elite NY prep school and I went to Cornell with Michigan as my second choice and Wisconsin as my safety.

(Also, I wasn't trying to be snotty. Some people would think it's a plus to not have a lot of NY kids.)

[Anonymous]

This seems like a very odd comparison as someone suggested above. Both are very good though not top tier state schools. I think both probably have some strong graduate programs that one might travel a good distance for but why would anyone compare the academic merits of these two schools? They have to be just about identical on that score, no matter what a USNWR ranking says, just like a school like the University of Georgia, excellent large state university but in the South. Madison is a cool town but I suspect the vast majority of the students will be from the Midwest and for good reason and Penn State has got to be filled PA kids too, that is kind of what they are for.

[Anonymous]

This is a plot by Penn State to improve their image. USNWR is useless.

[Anonymous]

Perhaps it will back fire and Penn State will take USNWR down with them.

[Anonymous]

Depends on what you're interested in. Wisconsin is top notch for the social sciences. Penn State is better for engineering, agricultural science, etc.

[Anonymous]

I never considered Wisconsin a great school. I always thought Wisconsin was on the same level as Michigan State or Iowa. I thought Penn State was one level ahead, but slightly below the best state schools - UNC, UCLA, UCLA. FWIW I went to U Mich and I never considered Wisconsin. I thought the only people who went to Wisconsin were people from Wisconsin who couldn't get in/afford other schools outside Wisconsin.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I never considered Wisconsin a great school. I always thought Wisconsin was on the same level as Michigan State or Iowa. I thought Penn State was one level ahead, but slightly below the best state schools - UNC, UCLA, UCLA. FWIW I went to U Mich and I never considered Wisconsin. I thought the only people who went to Wisconsin were people from Wisconsin who couldn't get in/afford other schools outside Wisconsin.

I always thought the only people who went to Penn State were people from Pennsylvania who couldn't get into/afford other schools outside Pennsylvania. My cousin (from PA) went to Penn State and he wasn't exactly a brain surgeon, so maybe that colored my viewpoint.

[Anonymous]

Wisconsin is more of a destination school. Not Ivy League, but a great school in one of the best college towns in the country that attracts people from all over the country and world. Penn State seems more for people who live near it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I never considered Wisconsin a great school. I always thought Wisconsin was on the same level as Michigan State or Iowa. I thought Penn State was one level ahead, but slightly below the best state schools - UNC, UCLA, UCLA. FWIW I went to U Mich and I never considered Wisconsin. I thought the only people who went to Wisconsin were people from Wisconsin who couldn't get in/afford other schools outside Wisconsin.

Your just mad because Wisconsin is another gem in the Midwest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This seems like a very odd comparison as someone suggested above. Both are very good though not top tier state schools. I think both probably have some strong graduate programs that one might travel a good distance for but why would anyone compare the academic merits of these two schools? They have to be just about identical on that score, no matter what a USNWR ranking says, just like a school like the University of Georgia, excellent large state university but in the South. Madison is a cool town but I suspect the vast majority of the students will be from the Midwest and for good reason and Penn State has got to be filled PA kids too, that is kind of what they are for.

I would agree with this (as a PSU alum). You can get a great education from either place, and they both have some stellar graduate programs. At the undergrad level, people primarily go to the one that gives them better tuition rates (or more aid) or is nearby. We had tons of people from NJ at Penn State as well.