UW-Madison vs. U of Texas at Austin

[Anonymous]

Austin is more fun

[Anonymous]

I went to UW so am biased, but I cannot thing of a better undergrad experience. And I have been to Austin and think it is fantastic. The two schools are very similar, so it will need to come down to preference and feel, though currently, the football, basketball and hockey are better at UW if he cares at all about that.

Colder in Madison, sure, but it get that -50 blast at the same time that we get the -20 blast here, it is what it is. Most of the time, it is really beautiful and you really do get used to the cold- it isn't that much different than DC.

More diverse in Austin, but it's Texas, which really is its own state of mind and being.

(I jest about the hockey, but with the new coach, it should be back to national contention by the time he is an upperclassman)

[Anonymous]

Tough call. I lean toward Madison as long as he doesn't mind the cold. Texas is too far away for me, and it's, well, in Texas! The worst state in the union, IMHO. Austin is supposed to be great, though, so if he loves the weather and the food, that's the place for him. I know people who went to Madison and loved it. Madison is a nice small city, lots to do there, but it's cold, very, very cold during January-February. The rest of the time it's fine, weather-wise.

[Anonymous]

As a mom, Austin is a great town to visit! My mom LOVED coming to Austin while we lived there.

I'd look closely at the diversity though, if that's important. It never felt that diverse to me as a business grad student or attending the football games. Word of caution...if he moves to Austin, he may never want to leave. It's such a great city and very, very different from the rest of Texas. But the school is pretty much all Texans.

The heat can be brutal, but that's mostly in the summer when school isn't in session.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As a mom, Austin is a great town to visit! My mom LOVED coming to Austin while we lived there.

I'd look closely at the diversity though, if that's important. It never felt that diverse to me as a business grad student or attending the football games. Word of caution...if he moves to Austin, he may never want to leave. It's such a great city and very, very different from the rest of Texas. But the school is pretty much all Texans.

The heat can be brutal, but that's mostly in the summer when school isn't in session.

Racially and ethnically, U of Texas is far more diverse than UW-Madison, if that is a concern for OP's kid. I loved my time at both schools (undergrad at UW, MBA at McCombs), but Wisconsin is very homogenous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Tough call. I lean toward Madison as long as he doesn't mind the cold. Texas is too far away for me, and it's, well, in Texas! The worst state in the union, IMHO. Austin is supposed to be great, though, so if he loves the weather and the food, that's the place for him. I know people who went to Madison and loved it. Madison is a nice small city, lots to do there, but it's cold, very, very cold during January-February. The rest of the time it's fine, weather-wise.

Curious- in what capacity have you lived in TX?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a mom, Austin is a great town to visit! My mom LOVED coming to Austin while we lived there.

I'd look closely at the diversity though, if that's important. It never felt that diverse to me as a business grad student or attending the football games. Word of caution...if he moves to Austin, he may never want to leave. It's such a great city and very, very different from the rest of Texas. But the school is pretty much all Texans.

The heat can be brutal, but that's mostly in the summer when school isn't in session.

Racially and ethnically, U of Texas is far more diverse than UW-Madison, if that is a concern for OP's kid. I loved my time at both schools (undergrad at UW, MBA at McCombs), but Wisconsin is very homogenous.

This is a good point. Looking at the numbers it is not even comparable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does he like the cold?

Doesn't mind it.

Virginia cold doesn't even come close to Wisconsin cold. I knew someone from UW Madison and they had classes cancelled once because the windchill was -50!??!!

This. We moved here from Madison four years ago and winters there are long and cold. Think 16-17 degrees for months at a time. People there love it and know how to deal with it, but it's cold. Really cold. But also beautiful, and spring/summer there is awesome! It's a great town. I've never lived in Austin so can't compare, but Madison is a cool place.

[Anonymous]

Both are just large, somewhat above average schools as far as undergrad goes.

[Anonymous]

If I were to make uneducated guesses, I would say that UW-Madison probably has more of a school-wide binge drinking problem than UT-Austin, where it is more likely confined to the greek system. But then again, at UT there will be more pressure to join the greek system because it is more central to social events. I would also probably guess that outside of binge drinking in the greek system, the policing is likely to be more aggressive at UT-Austin so if your kid every did decide party a little bit it would be more likely they would ticketed and leave college with an infraction/record (see e.g. Jenna Bush). While at Wisconsin, I would assume that if you drink in the dorms and get caught, you are more likely to get written up and kicked out after a couple warnings than having the cops called on you. So Madison is probably a safer and more permissive risk-taking environment, whereas in Austin you only get those priviledges through the greek system.

[Anonymous]

UW Madison grad. Loved loved loved the school. Fun plus great academic opportunities. Strong network because most people who went to UW loved it and want to connect with fellow alumni.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tough call. I lean toward Madison as long as he doesn't mind the cold. Texas is too far away for me, and it's, well, in Texas! The worst state in the union, IMHO. Austin is supposed to be great, though, so if he loves the weather and the food, that's the place for him. I know people who went to Madison and loved it. Madison is a nice small city, lots to do there, but it's cold, very, very cold during January-February. The rest of the time it's fine, weather-wise.

Curious- in what capacity have you lived in TX?

I've never lived in Texas. But I read about all the executions there, and it makes me never want to set foot in the state. Almost everything I read about Texas makes me ill. Plus the Bushes are from Texas. Dubya lives there. Nuff said.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tough call. I lean toward Madison as long as he doesn't mind the cold. Texas is too far away for me, and it's, well, in Texas! The worst state in the union, IMHO. Austin is supposed to be great, though, so if he loves the weather and the food, that's the place for him. I know people who went to Madison and loved it. Madison is a nice small city, lots to do there, but it's cold, very, very cold during January-February. The rest of the time it's fine, weather-wise.

Curious- in what capacity have you lived in TX?

I've never lived in Texas. But I read about all the executions there, and it makes me never want to set foot in the state. Almost everything I read about Texas makes me ill. Plus the Bushes are from Texas. Dubya lives there. Nuff said.

That's what I thought.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I were to make uneducated guesses, I would say that UW-Madison probably has more of a school-wide binge drinking problem than UT-Austin, where it is more likely confined to the greek system. But then again, at UT there will be more pressure to join the greek system because it is more central to social events. I would also probably guess that outside of binge drinking in the greek system, the policing is likely to be more aggressive at UT-Austin so if your kid every did decide party a little bit it would be more likely they would ticketed and leave college with an infraction/record (see e.g. Jenna Bush). While at Wisconsin, I would assume that if you drink in the dorms and get caught, you are more likely to get written up and kicked out after a couple warnings than having the cops called on you. So Madison is probably a safer and more permissive risk-taking environment, whereas in Austin you only get those priviledges through the greek system.

Wisconsin is a beer state. Miller and a ton of smaller and micro breweries. If they could have avoided the driking age change in the 1980's they would have. I don't think they are allowed to consume alcohol in the dorms, but there are plenty of "house" parties (pay 5 dollars and get a red plastic cup) and frat parties. The bars card because its the law, but the culture of the area around campus is very pro-student.

And the cold is mostly January-February, but there is usually only one-two weeks of school in January anyhow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I were to make uneducated guesses, I would say that UW-Madison probably has more of a school-wide binge drinking problem than UT-Austin, where it is more likely confined to the greek system. But then again, at UT there will be more pressure to join the greek system because it is more central to social events. I would also probably guess that outside of binge drinking in the greek system, the policing is likely to be more aggressive at UT-Austin so if your kid every did decide party a little bit it would be more likely they would ticketed and leave college with an infraction/record (see e.g. Jenna Bush). While at Wisconsin, I would assume that if you drink in the dorms and get caught, you are more likely to get written up and kicked out after a couple warnings than having the cops called on you. So Madison is probably a safer and more permissive risk-taking environment, whereas in Austin you only get those priviledges through the greek system.

Madison is less than 10% Greek. The social atmosphere is amazing because there is so much to do. Many students drink like at most colleges but many do not and don't feel pressure to. Many restaurants, coffee houses, live music, sports, museums, movie theaters, shopping, and lots of outdoor activities in all seasons.