have recently been admitted to UT Mccombs as a first year student as well as UW-Madison with almost a full ride ($5,000 per year). I am struggling to decide between the two as 5k a year sounds very appealing except I would have to apply into the business school once at UW. My overall tuition for Mccombs for four years would be around 96k (if I can obtain residency) while UW would be 20k. Both require a lot of work the first year (maintaining an exceptionally high GPA to get into UW business) or (working 20 hours a week to become a Texas resident). Is there really a noticeable difference between the two business programs or am I better off saving my tuition money and going to UW?
If you can afford it go to UT, if not be happy with 5k a year at UW.
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How do you plan to get residency?
You buying a house?
So - what is your price if you donât have residency?
Right now itâs $60K to $67K + inflation - so letâs say $275K.
So thatâs your delta.
Unless you have some magical way to get residency?
After that it becomes:
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Even at your price - $96K and Iâm guessing (but hope not) that itâs wishful thinking - thatâs $75K more - can you afford it?
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Do you prefer UT over UW or you just like the higher rank?
If all were equal and the schools were equally ranked and both direct admit, which would you prefer?
Which discipline of business? Finance might be the major (if you want banking) where UT could make a difference.
In the end, you have to be able to afford school.
If you prefer UT and itâs affordable, then you can go.
But when you say - if I worked 20 hours a week I can become a resident - then the entire OOS population would work 20 hours a week.
How to become a resident - I donât see anything about 20 hours (but you may know more):
This option is available to students who are:
- Citizens or permanent residents of the U.S. (Non-citizens and non-permanent residents may also use this option if they have an application for permanent residency on file with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service.)
- International students who possess an eligible visa.
If you are independent for tax purposes, you may gain resident status if you establish domicile in the state. If your parent(s) claim you as a dependent on their federal income tax return, they must establish domicile in the state for you to claim residency.
To establish domicile, you or your parent(s) must meet the following criteria:
- Live in Texas for 12 consecutive months; and
- Establish and maintain domicile for 12 consecutive months, as evidenced by:
- Gainful employment in Texas;
Note: Student jobs do not qualify as gainful employment. - Sole or joint marital ownership of residential real property in Texas by the person seeking to enroll or the dependentâs parent, having established and maintained a domicile at the residence;
- Ownership and operation of a business in Texas; or
- Marriage for one year to a person who has established domicile in Texas.
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A 20 hour a week job at an off campus location qualifies as âGainful employmentâ. However, that seems like a sure way to start your first year off significantly worse than what is possible at UW Madison.
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Surprisingly, not all students take advantage of gaining residency in Texas. It really is just a bit of paperwork in addition to one of the four items listed.
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Not necessarily - it has to be able to support at least half of living expenses including tuition.
And that first year unless they take a gap year is OOS tuition.- Or am I missing something?
Gainful Employment: Employment intended to provide an income to a person or allow a person to avoid the expense of paying another person to perform the tasks (as in child care) and that is sufficient to provide at least one-half of the individualâs tuition and living expenses or that represents an average of at least 20 hours of employment per week.**
Itâs an either/or situation. Your employment must either provide half your expenses including tuition, or be for at least 20 hours a week.
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OK - so 1040 hours - (52 weeks x 20)?
And the first year is full pay ? so if thatâs $65K letâs say (somewhere between 60 and 68K)
And then 2-4 is 31 to 34K. So another $100K ish.
So about $160K-170K over four years?
I know OP showed less so perhaps they know something Iâm not seeing?
Seems a lot of risk where in most cases, UW will be its equal. Not banking.
Just my opinion - but only OPâs matters.
Iâm risk averse - and yes, there is risk as UW is pre business - but if you canât jump that hurdle, maybe it wasnât right for you anywayâŠ
I typically would advise to take the dorect admit but here the conditions surrounding the diregt admit make it too risky imho.
Freshmen are advised not to work more than 8-10 hours a week as it tanks their grades. Even for upperclassmen, the upper limit before grades are affected has been studied and is 14-15hours. McCombs is NOT going to be a picnic so working 20 hours a week as a freshman alongside it is borderline âjump off the roof and see if I glide or break my legsâ level of risk.
I would take UWisconsin for 5k.
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Gainful employment while a student is going to be a hard sell. You would probably have to take a gap year and to get in-state tuition and be an independent for your next tax returns (your parents will not like that). Have you talked to an AO about your thoughts on trying to get in-state tuition?
I agree - or all would be doing it but @parentkeith seems very familiar so it seems certainly possible.
Iâm using what I believe is logic - but they are clearly familiar so perhaps their insight will be more suitable to the OP.
To me though - it seems risky. But Iâm risk averse.
âIn general, students are considered Texas residents if they graduated from a Texas high school and lived in Texas for at least 36 months before graduating from that school and 12 months before enrolling in a university; or if they established permanent residency at least 12 months before enrolling in a university.â
So you have to live in Texas for 3 years before you graduate high school to be considered a Texas resident, but you think that working a part-time job while going to school will get you in-state tuition in year 2? I wouldnât trust this advice.
The burden for establishing permanent residency is clearly documented, accomplished by nearly every student who follows the steps, and supported by residency offices at the colleges.
My son successfully went through the steps, every one of his friends who bothered to try successfully completed the steps, some with as little as a tutoring side job (with necessary paperwork). There are even real estate agents that specifically market to these families.
I am not suggesting that OP take this route, from the information here, I think UW Madison is likely the better option. I am simply validating the information on the TX schools websites that state residency is obtainable after one year.
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UT McCombs not worth it at this relative cost vs UW Madison. Working 20hrs/week is going to jeopardize your grades. For recruiting purposes, being middle to back of the pack at McCombs IMO is less attractive to employers than being at the top of your class at Wisconsin, whether in the Business School or some relatively quant heavy major, like Economics.
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The two are peers overall at the undergrad level. McCombs is better known than the UW SoB, but everything at UW is high-quality â something like 50 majors are ranked in the top 25 of various publications.
If he failed to gain entry to the UW Business program, Econ would be an excellent Plan B â Econ is outstanding at UW.
When one peer is so much less expensive than the other, typically that makes the decision fairly easy. This is a bit more muddled because he would have to earn entry to his desired major at UW, but again, there are so many quality programs in Madison.
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