Big Ten School atmosphere similar to U of WI

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Setting aside Michigan, Indiana would be closest to the vibe of Wisconsin, followed by Minnesota and Iowa, and then perhaps Michigan State.

Illinois and Purdue are more nerdy and tech-oriented.

Northwestern is a quasi-Ivy.

Nebraska doesn’t pull as much from the East Coast or even the suburbs of the big Midwestern cities.

Penn State and Ohio State are enormous football factories.

Rutgers and Maryland are East Coast and in gritty areas that don’t come close to being nice college towns.

Nebraska is getting lots of students from the Chicago & Minneapolis areas. Also some from Missouri & Michigan. The generous out of state merit scholarships are making it very affordable.

I can’t imagine almost anybody from Michigan going to Nebraska. It makes sense if you’re from MN or IL, since the drop off from the public flagship is pretty large. I supposed if you can’t get into MSU, it’s plausible.

You’ve apparently never visited U of Nebraska. It’s half the size of MSU, & feels even smaller because some programs are on a separate campus a few miles away.

I’m from Michigan, & kid did get in MSU, but wanted something different & less sprawling. Kid knew quite a few other Michiganders at Nebraska, had a great time, & now has wonderful job in Chicago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not big 10 but how about Kansas? DD also interested in WI but it may be a longshot and we’ve read about Kansas and it seems sort of appealing but it definitely doesn’t seem to be on the radar screen of east coasters.

Any thoughts on Kansas?

I am OP and I have posted this before, but I spent a few days in Lawrence and drove around the campus and fell in love with it. Beautiful architecture and grounds. I think the location will be too remote for DC, but it is on my radar at least.

My DC prefers Kansas to many of the Big 10 schools. It’s a more manageable size and they have very good merit scholarships.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
By comparison, to DD (and it goes without saying each of these are fine schools, and some are more competitive admits than IU - these aren't objective judgments but just how close it felt to what DD liked about Wisconsin):
Iowa felt isolated, notwithstanding the charms of Iowa City.
Illinois' setting wasn't inspiring, and the OOS contingent isn't as big (and she didn't want to feel out of place).
Purdue felt like principally a STEM school (and the campus and setting seem drab compared to IU). She wasn't interested.
Penn State (University Park) is out in the middle of nowhere.
Michigan State seemed very much Michigan-centric, and DD was looking for a school specializing in programs more like Ann Arbor's than MSU's ag/tech programs.
Minnesota/Twin Cities is an urban school and campus.
We didn't look at Northwestern or Michigan (unattainable) or Nebraska (higher ranked schools seemed achieveable, and a three hour drive to Kansas City seemed too remote).
UMD and Rutgers - she read up on them, wasn't interested.

I agree with some PP that OSU might be another good Wisconsin-like option, but Columbus isn't Madison, and the OOS contingent at OSU isn't as big as at some other Big Ten schools. For us, we have relatives in Columbus who DD wanted to avoid, so she didn't seriously consider OSU (her call...).

A large non-B1G flagship that ticks some of the same boxes (and is an easier admit than Wisconsin), albeit with more of a western than midwestern feel, is Colorado/Boulder (queue the obligatory references to weed and mountains). DD got in there as well, and seriously considered it, but is really happy she opted for IU.

Good luck!

Agree with all the above. IU was where my DS landed on this topic too - and that Indy airport and drive over is really easy.

Before you box yourself in tho, we got something of a pre-read at Marquette and they were offering money to my B+ student money, making them cheaper than big OOS schools. This prompted us to expand our search to privates with a lot of school spirit. He's at Syracuse with merit money (test optional) and really very happy there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
By comparison, to DD (and it goes without saying each of these are fine schools, and some are more competitive admits than IU - these aren't objective judgments but just how close it felt to what DD liked about Wisconsin):
Iowa felt isolated, notwithstanding the charms of Iowa City.
Illinois' setting wasn't inspiring, and the OOS contingent isn't as big (and she didn't want to feel out of place).
Purdue felt like principally a STEM school (and the campus and setting seem drab compared to IU). She wasn't interested.
Penn State (University Park) is out in the middle of nowhere.
Michigan State seemed very much Michigan-centric, and DD was looking for a school specializing in programs more like Ann Arbor's than MSU's ag/tech programs.
Minnesota/Twin Cities is an urban school and campus.
We didn't look at Northwestern or Michigan (unattainable) or Nebraska (higher ranked schools seemed achieveable, and a three hour drive to Kansas City seemed too remote).
UMD and Rutgers - she read up on them, wasn't interested.

I agree with some PP that OSU might be another good Wisconsin-like option, but Columbus isn't Madison, and the OOS contingent at OSU isn't as big as at some other Big Ten schools. For us, we have relatives in Columbus who DD wanted to avoid, so she didn't seriously consider OSU (her call...).

A large non-B1G flagship that ticks some of the same boxes (and is an easier admit than Wisconsin), albeit with more of a western than midwestern feel, is Colorado/Boulder (queue the obligatory references to weed and mountains). DD got in there as well, and seriously considered it, but is really happy she opted for IU.

Good luck!

Agree with all the above. IU was where my DS landed on this topic too - and that Indy airport and drive over is really easy.

Before you box yourself in tho, we got something of a pre-read at Marquette and they were offering money to my B+ student money, making them cheaper than big OOS schools. This prompted us to expand our search to privates with a lot of school spirit. He's at Syracuse with merit money (test optional) and really very happy there.

That's a good idea. Larger-than-average privates are worth looking into. A school large enough to create an active vibe across campus with school spirit is important to DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:UGA is the closest to the UW vibe.

We visited both and my child strongly preferred UGA. Wound up not applying to Wisconsin and UGA is in top 2 or 3 now. Found both the campus and town more appealing. Won’t give much consideration to UMD for reasons already stated by others.

[Anonymous]

Ohio State. Similar people. Similar city. Lots of school spirit. Football-centric.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Setting aside Michigan, Indiana would be closest to the vibe of Wisconsin, followed by Minnesota and Iowa, and then perhaps Michigan State.

Illinois and Purdue are more nerdy and tech-oriented.

Northwestern is a quasi-Ivy.

Nebraska doesn’t pull as much from the East Coast or even the suburbs of the big Midwestern cities.

Penn State and Ohio State are enormous football factories.

Rutgers and Maryland are East Coast and in gritty areas that don’t come close to being nice college towns.

Nebraska is getting lots of students from the Chicago & Minneapolis areas. Also some from Missouri & Michigan. The generous out of state merit scholarships are making it very affordable.

I can’t imagine almost anybody from Michigan going to Nebraska. It makes sense if you’re from MN or IL, since the drop off from the public flagship is pretty large. I supposed if you can’t get into MSU, it’s plausible.

You’ve apparently never visited U of Nebraska. It’s half the size of MSU, & feels even smaller because some programs are on a separate campus a few miles away.

I’m from Michigan, & kid did get in MSU, but wanted something different & less sprawling. Kid knew quite a few other Michiganders at Nebraska, had a great time, & now has wonderful job in Chicago.

Nebraska currently is easily the weakest school in the B1G. I’m sure there are a few students from Michigan, but it hardly makes any sense to attend there if you have offers from Michigan or Michigan State. Outliers exist in most situations

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UGA is the closest to the UW vibe.

We visited both and my child strongly preferred UGA. Wound up not applying to Wisconsin and UGA is in top 2 or 3 now. Found both the campus and town more appealing. Won’t give much consideration to UMD for reasons already stated by others.

What are other room choices? Where do you live?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Setting aside Michigan, Indiana would be closest to the vibe of Wisconsin, followed by Minnesota and Iowa, and then perhaps Michigan State.

Illinois and Purdue are more nerdy and tech-oriented.

Northwestern is a quasi-Ivy.

Nebraska doesn’t pull as much from the East Coast or even the suburbs of the big Midwestern cities.

Penn State and Ohio State are enormous football factories.

Rutgers and Maryland are East Coast and in gritty areas that don’t come close to being nice college towns.

Nebraska is getting lots of students from the Chicago & Minneapolis areas. Also some from Missouri & Michigan. The generous out of state merit scholarships are making it very affordable.

I can’t imagine almost anybody from Michigan going to Nebraska. It makes sense if you’re from MN or IL, since the drop off from the public flagship is pretty large. I supposed if you can’t get into MSU, it’s plausible.

You’ve apparently never visited U of Nebraska. It’s half the size of MSU, & feels even smaller because some programs are on a separate campus a few miles away.

I’m from Michigan, & kid did get in MSU, but wanted something different & less sprawling. Kid knew quite a few other Michiganders at Nebraska, had a great time, & now has wonderful job in Chicago.

Nebraska currently is easily the weakest school in the B1G. I’m sure there are a few students from Michigan, but it hardly makes any sense to attend there if you have offers from Michigan or Michigan State. Outliers exist in most situations

The narrowness of your view of possible criteria is stunning. Some people might grow up right next to an Arby’s, & every day everybody they know eats at Arby’s. But some day one of them might wake up & think, “Arby’s is fine, but I think today I will try something crazy like eating at KFC.” Is that sort of thinking beyond your comprehension?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ohio State. Similar people. Similar city. Lots of school spirit. Football-centric.

Not even close.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you're looking for another Big Ten school that is similar (no two universities are identical) to Wisconsin but an easier admit, for us Indiana was the choice (just went through the same process two years ago -- DD was rejected at top choice Wisconsin, got into IU Bloomington, and is loving it there). Large school, pretty campus, strong public policy and arts programs, lively community, relatively large OOS contingent. Bloomington is smaller than Madison but Indianapolis is just an hour up the road so that kind of balances.

By comparison, to DD (and it goes without saying each of these are fine schools, and some are more competitive admits than IU - these aren't objective judgments but just how close it felt to what DD liked about Wisconsin):
Iowa felt isolated, notwithstanding the charms of Iowa City.
Illinois' setting wasn't inspiring, and the OOS contingent isn't as big (and she didn't want to feel out of place).
Purdue felt like principally a STEM school (and the campus and setting seem drab compared to IU). She wasn't interested.
Penn State (University Park) is out in the middle of nowhere.
Michigan State seemed very much Michigan-centric, and DD was looking for a school specializing in programs more like Ann Arbor's than MSU's ag/tech programs.
Minnesota/Twin Cities is an urban school and campus.
We didn't look at Northwestern or Michigan (unattainable) or Nebraska (higher ranked schools seemed achieveable, and a three hour drive to Kansas City seemed too remote).
UMD and Rutgers - she read up on them, wasn't interested.

I agree with some PP that OSU might be another good Wisconsin-like option, but Columbus isn't Madison, and the OOS contingent at OSU isn't as big as at some other Big Ten schools. For us, we have relatives in Columbus who DD wanted to avoid, so she didn't seriously consider OSU (her call...).

A large non-B1G flagship that ticks some of the same boxes (and is an easier admit than Wisconsin), albeit with more of a western than midwestern feel, is Colorado/Boulder (queue the obligatory references to weed and mountains). DD got in there as well, and seriously considered it, but is really happy she opted for IU.

Good luck!

How's nightlife at IU? Did she apply to UF or UGA? Was she upset at Madison?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Setting aside Michigan, Indiana would be closest to the vibe of Wisconsin, followed by Minnesota and Iowa, and then perhaps Michigan State.

Illinois and Purdue are more nerdy and tech-oriented.

Northwestern is a quasi-Ivy.

Nebraska doesn’t pull as much from the East Coast or even the suburbs of the big Midwestern cities.

Penn State and Ohio State are enormous football factories.

Rutgers and Maryland are East Coast and in gritty areas that don’t come close to being nice college towns.

Nebraska is getting lots of students from the Chicago & Minneapolis areas. Also some from Missouri & Michigan. The generous out of state merit scholarships are making it very affordable.

I can’t imagine almost anybody from Michigan going to Nebraska. It makes sense if you’re from MN or IL, since the drop off from the public flagship is pretty large. I supposed if you can’t get into MSU, it’s plausible.

You’ve apparently never visited U of Nebraska. It’s half the size of MSU, & feels even smaller because some programs are on a separate campus a few miles away.

I’m from Michigan, & kid did get in MSU, but wanted something different & less sprawling. Kid knew quite a few other Michiganders at Nebraska, had a great time, & now has wonderful job in Chicago.

Nebraska currently is easily the weakest school in the B1G. I’m sure there are a few students from Michigan, but it hardly makes any sense to attend there if you have offers from Michigan or Michigan State. Outliers exist in most situations

The narrowness of your view of possible criteria is stunning. Some people might grow up right next to an Arby’s, & every day everybody they know eats at Arby’s. But some day one of them might wake up & think, “Arby’s is fine, but I think today I will try something crazy like eating at KFC.” Is that sort of thinking beyond your comprehension?

We are not talking about public universities that are equal in quality. Your comparison example is not valid and way too simplistic. I can understand liking Arby’s, but I’m not traveling 800 miles to get KFC just because it’s different, especially since all fast food sucks. Of course there are some Michigan based students at Nebraska, just like any other university in the country. A PP said that Nebraska is getting a lot of kids from Michigan. I said it was highly unlikely and also stated that there are always outliers. That’s what my comment was based on and your response does nothing to disprove it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Setting aside Michigan, Indiana would be closest to the vibe of Wisconsin, followed by Minnesota and Iowa, and then perhaps Michigan State.

Illinois and Purdue are more nerdy and tech-oriented.

Northwestern is a quasi-Ivy.

Nebraska doesn’t pull as much from the East Coast or even the suburbs of the big Midwestern cities.

Penn State and Ohio State are enormous football factories.

Rutgers and Maryland are East Coast and in gritty areas that don’t come close to being nice college towns.

Nebraska is getting lots of students from the Chicago & Minneapolis areas. Also some from Missouri & Michigan. The generous out of state merit scholarships are making it very affordable.

I can’t imagine almost anybody from Michigan going to Nebraska. It makes sense if you’re from MN or IL, since the drop off from the public flagship is pretty large. I supposed if you can’t get into MSU, it’s plausible.

You’ve apparently never visited U of Nebraska. It’s half the size of MSU, & feels even smaller because some programs are on a separate campus a few miles away.

I’m from Michigan, & kid did get in MSU, but wanted something different & less sprawling. Kid knew quite a few other Michiganders at Nebraska, had a great time, & now has wonderful job in Chicago.

Nebraska currently is easily the weakest school in the B1G. I’m sure there are a few students from Michigan, but it hardly makes any sense to attend there if you have offers from Michigan or Michigan State. Outliers exist in most situations

The narrowness of your view of possible criteria is stunning. Some people might grow up right next to an Arby’s, & every day everybody they know eats at Arby’s. But some day one of them might wake up & think, “Arby’s is fine, but I think today I will try something crazy like eating at KFC.” Is that sort of thinking beyond your comprehension?

We are not talking about public universities that are equal in quality. Your comparison example is not valid and way too simplistic. I can understand liking Arby’s, but I’m not traveling 800 miles to get KFC just because it’s different, especially since all fast food sucks. Of course there are some Michigan based students at Nebraska, just like any other university in the country. A PP said that Nebraska is getting a lot of kids from Michigan. I said it was highly unlikely and also stated that there are always outliers. That’s what my comment was based on and your response does nothing to disprove it.

Typical Sparty. Doesn’t even understand what an analogy is.

[Anonymous]

MI
OSU
IU
MN
Penn State

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Setting aside Michigan, Indiana would be closest to the vibe of Wisconsin, followed by Minnesota and Iowa, and then perhaps Michigan State.

Illinois and Purdue are more nerdy and tech-oriented.

Northwestern is a quasi-Ivy.

Nebraska doesn’t pull as much from the East Coast or even the suburbs of the big Midwestern cities.

Penn State and Ohio State are enormous football factories.

Rutgers and Maryland are East Coast and in gritty areas that don’t come close to being nice college towns.

Have you been to any of these schools or is this some kind of AI summary? OP, this is not an accurate summary except for the Nebraska line.

Really? I thought PP nailed the descriptions!

+1