Admissions

Apply early, I really believe this will increase your chances of getting accepted and will get you a response a lot faster so you can make your decision. Really work to get a high ACT score and writing a good admissions essay.

Do your best in high school, and don't blow off senior year! Take a lot of AP and honors classes to show that you are capable of performing well at the college level, and make sure to take the tests to get college credit. I am technically a sophomore even though it is my first year since I had so many AP credits, and this is a huge benefit in the long run since you will always be among the first to pick your classes! Also, never count yourself out and not apply just cause of GPA and ACT scores, take as many leadership roles as possible in clubs and activities and do service hours, in addition to spending a lot of time on essays. This will greatly increase your chances of admission!

Make sure you are prepared to step up to the plate and earn your grades. In high school it is easy to put in minimum effort and obtain perfect grades, but now that you are at the university level it is necessary for you to be at the top of your game. You need to be equipped for major studying and late nights in order to achieve a good GPA.

The school is large, but that doesn't mean that you have to feel overwhelmed here. When you break down all the academic programs you will most likely end up in a relatively small group of students. Go to the activities fair and find something to get involved with, but DO NOT take on too much. Choose one or two extra-curricular activities at one time. Freshman year is very hard for many students and often grades will show this. It will help you to have a couple of outlets to have some fun, but it will hurt you if you never have time to study. On that note - make sure you are studying and doing your work everyday. Procrastinating may get you by in high school but for the vast majority of people it doesn't work like that at Madison.

Expect greatness. Your classes will be hard, but living on your own will be harder. Madison is a great town with plenty of people to befriend. Network as much as possible

Never say no to an experience. There's so many fun things to do that you might not even know of, so if you're offered to do something on campus with friends, do it! It's almost guaranteed you will enjoy yourself.

The best tip that I can give to a prospective student is to try and find your niche on campus. Once you find your community, even a campus as big as UW- Madison can feel like home away from home.

Apply early! Also, with your application, if you cant remember what you wrote about a few weeks after you write your essay, the admissions dept. will not feel like your application is a standout. Make sure you show your true self, and really take time to think of a creative and exciting essay.

Get involved! Everyone who I've met at UW has been a leader in some form or another. I'm not saying you have to be captain of the lacrosse team, but be an active contributor to the lacrosse team! Leadership skills will not only help you succeed at UW, but in life as well so it is best to start early!

Study! Develop those study skills early because believe me Madison is not like high school anymore. Get to know your teachers so you can establish a relationship with them (you do need a strong letter of recommendation).

Visit Madison! Make sure you see it. Most kids will write it off as a huge school taught by TAs that only cares about their grad students. This is far from true. As someone who easily gets lost, it's not as bad as it looks. If you visit, be sure to attend a class! Most lectures are rather large and it is easy to sneak in and see the academic atmosphere.

This was my safety school since it has around a 50% acceptance rate. Let me tell you, it is not an easy school like I thought it was going to be. The school maintains very high academic standards and a great reputation for research despite the relatively high acceptance rate (and its reputation for partying). There are many opportunities here for the dedicated scholar-- and a lot of lit parties.