Michigan V. Wisconsin Undergrad
My college decision is now narrowed down to UW Madison and UMich. I would typically take UMich in a heartbeat, but I was given no financial aid, and paying for it would be pretty difficult for my family and I. My parents are saying they would do what they can to make it work, but I would realistically need to take on $100k myself in loans. The other option is in state tuition at UW Madison, and possibly a few local scholarships that are only paid out if I stay in Wisconsin.
I didn't apply to Ross, and would have to try to transfer in after freshman year. At UW I was a direct admit to the business school, and would probably try to double major in finance and econ. Out of undergrad I'd like to work in IB in the Chicago area. Is Michigan econ worth double the cost of UW? I've visited both schools, and I like UMich quite a bit more, but I'm having a hard time justifying taking on 6 figures of debt for undergrad.
I'd really appreciate any input, thank you.
100K of debt is a lot...I'd say make the most of UW-Madison. Plus, it isn't direct admit to Ross.
I believe a lot of posters on here have said that UW-Madison can do pretty ok for job placements in Chicago.
Wisconsin and that’s coming from a Michigan student.
Is consulting more sought after at Ross or IB?
Both equally. For IB it’s New York and Chicago while for consulting we placed ~10 people to MBB internships mostly at Chicago and Detroit offices.
Ross is a more highly regarded school. However, if you can get into IBC (Investment Banking Club) at UW-Madison they place extremely well in NYC and Chicago (Goldman, MS, etc). Also, based on what I’ve heard from my UMich friends our social scene and campus are better.
Socially they’re similar and Madison being on the water is a huge plus. I’d give the edge to AA as a college town but $$$ is more important in this decision.
Thank you, I'm just waiting on a scholarship decision from Michigan. If I get the scholarship then Michigan won't be much of a financial burden, but will still cost a bit more than UW.
Either way it's a tough decision right now
Putting UMich and UW on the same level socially is a joke. UW over UMich hands down if that’s what you want to do with your 4 years.
Second the comments above. Almost no distance whatsoever between Michigan reputation and Wisconsin reputation if we're not talking about Ross. The myth of college brands as valuable assets is crumbling and will now crumble faster in this downturn. Our kids will laugh at the fact that we paid $100k for college at all, much less the spread between two state schools.
Still getting MS from Michigan people (or others who overpaid for a meaningless brand upgrade) almost four years later. Amazing. Nothing pisses people off like making them realize their life choices haven’t been so brilliant.
I was in the same situation and chose UW over UMich. Being a direct admit at UW and with no guarantee for Ross or tolerance to take out large student loans, it was a no-brainer for me.
I had the time of my life at Madison and had no problems entering IB afterwards. The business school places well at nearly all BBs (believe 15 went to GS this past summer) and we kill it with the MM Chicago-based boutiques.
You wont have problems recruiting in NYC, let alone Chi. Choose what feels right and know that if you hustle at either school you'll be just fine.
I had some doubts about the 15 going to Goldman, so I looked it up on Wisconsin's website. It shows 11 going Goldman, with a majority going to Minneapolis-St Paul. I don't know much about Goldman but I don't think they have actual Investment Banking there.
Prefacing this by saying I have no clue about UW’s placement, the GS office in Minneapolis office, and so forth.
But IMHO, the worst and most damaging part of this site is people who give out ‘advice’ based on half-truths (at best), that serve almost entirely to make themselves feel better about their school, firm, etc. Do your own research (far) outside of WSO, people!
Unsure what the reference to GS Minneapolis is - I don't believe they even have an office there. Perhaps graduates who are from MN (the states have reciprocity so there are many) didn't change their home location on Linkedin.
FWIW, not *all *15 placed into IBD. For ex - some went to GSAM, MBD, etc. Those that did placed into great groups such as TMT.
My advice that I'm giving you is from my own experiences, being a graduate from the program, seeing friends place into these firms and having worked at BB and EB myself. Wisconsin SoB is not as prestigious as Ross, but the degree ROI is likely much higher at UW given its in-state tuition. Also Madison > AA
Thank you! I'm pretty much set on UW at this point, and I'm looking forward to it as long as the fall semester isn't completely online.
Such a lie. UW is a horrible schools academically. It's your average state flagship with below average students. UW's outcomes are horrible, godawful. As context, for business specifically the average Umich student starts with a 90k salary. The average UW business student makes 50k out of college, and that's probably the best they'll ever get because your alumni are a bunch of losers. Have fun being poor!
commenting about transferring into Ross. it’s absolutely possible, rate is like 30%, you just have to be super involved first year. that’s some pressure but it’s not as big a risk as others think. obviously self selected population and most are pretty smart but from what I can tell you’d have to work really hard and may not get in but there are clubs at Mich and stuff that work for LSA students. also, never met 1 (as in a single individual) from UW- Madison in any super day or group or anything (Deffo seen some LinkedIn profiles tho) but I’m just saying Mich edges out UWM slightly and the risk reward kind of evens out if you work hard and get into ross you’re basically guaranteed an SA spot (you’ll have a high GPA and involvement already) as like 80-100 kids go into IB. Saw several people from LSA place into mid tier IB who weren’t that impressive either but good personalities.
Good lord. Do not take out $100,000 in loans to go to Michigan.
By alumni outcomes, the average Michigan student will make hundreds of thousands of more than a UW student. Not to mention Michigan students are just better/more respectable human beings in general.
Only a Michigan affiliated person would say something so ridiculous.
No neutral person thinks this way.
3-4 UW grads in my incoming analyst class at MMIB
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Plenty of Wisconsin grads down here in Chicago, definitely should be going there, 100k debt for undergrad is a lot
There are some Michigan people on this sub who keep downvoting the fact that Wisconsin and Michigan both have similar academic reputations. It somehow doesn't register to them that when your the state school of a farming state (Wisconsin), most kids don't want IB. Michigan, on the other hand, is full of rich OOS coasties who live IB. If you checked LinkedIn profiles, you see those who try and network in Wisconsin get IB.
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The University of Michigan is a prestigious, target university. UW-Madison is not. The reputation of your school is directly correlated with your ability to break into this industry, sorry to sound harsh, but facts are facts. I will say this as someone who transferred into a top target, and financed a significant portion of it with loans recently enough that I can understand the numbers - if I had to do it over, I would. Instead of looking at student loans as something to be afraid of, I would urge you to look at them as an investment that will appreciate over time. By going to a more selective, competitive school, you will be surrounded by people who are, on average, more intelligent and motivated than students at your average state school. Employers know this, and consequently, they will be more likely to give you opportunities if there is a better school on your resume. I’m not saying that exceptions don’t exist on both sides, but in the aggregate, this is the case. Don’t allow your situation, or your parent’s situation, in January 2024, to determine the entire trajectory of your life and career, which, hopefully, will be very long.
University of Michigan and University of Wisconsin are both highly regarded universities academically. Actually, Wisconsin is somewhat underrated on this sub, largely because very few of its alumni want to go into high finance in the first place. Academia property understands Wisconsin's reputation and place; it's ranked 6th among publics in terms of academic peer reputation in the US News and World Report peer reputation score. In other words, UNC=Texas=Wisconsin. If you want to call Wisconsin "average", take it up with their 20 Nobels. If you're going for Chicago IB, Wisconsin and Michigan have similar reputations. The main difference is that Michigan takes in huge swaths of heavily rich out of state students from the east coast who want IB in the first place. If a Wisconsin student wants IB, and tries in college, he can get it.
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