As June 1 approaches, I am deciding between St. Olaf and UW Madison. I am interested in a STEM degree while continuing music in an orchestra at a high level. My ultimate goal is law school. Which college has stronger academics and/or more prestige and by how much? How would the colleges weigh differently in applying to law school?
Prestige isn’t as important for law school admission as your GPA and LSAT score. Both of these places are well recognized, so there isn’t much difference on the prestige scale. Law school is expensive, so you can safely choose the cheapest one.
The music issue is a separate factor. Have you had auditions at both places and what did you think of them?
I have auditioned at St. Olaf and received their highest music scholarship and I wouldn’t have to major in music to earn it. UW Madison I have not visited due to COVID-19 which leaves me a little lost about their music program and campus.
I visited UW-Madison’s campus and really loved it, very modern feeling but with charm. It is very much a college town, but it’s also a state capital so there is still stuff to do there (look up State Street). You are in between two lakes which is cool. Not sure about the greek-life prescence though, probably somewhat prevalent since it is a state school.
For music + STEM, you’d be hard pressed in finding a stronger college than St Olaf.
That’s pretty much what they’re nationally known for 
p.
For law school, you need to read/write a lot, which is inherent to any LAC degree.
That being said:
Are both affordable?
Wrt UWisconsin: do they let non majors play in the “main” orchestra? If you haven’t auditioned, do you even have a shot?=> you must check.
St Olaf is cheaper after aid. Music is also
certain there for me. UW Madison does allow music non majors into their top orchestra, but there is no guarantee you’ll end up in a group. I also have had a difficult time finding recordings of the UW Madison Symphony so I am unaware what level the orchestra plays.
Sounds like a no brainier to me then => st Olaf
These are very difference experiences (large state school vs. small LAC). It won’t make a difference in terms of law school admissions where you go to undergrad.
St Olaf at less cost seems like a no brainer! You can also expect to enjoy close mentorship from your professors at a smaller school in addition to superb music and STEM offerings. I was very impressed when we visited the school and it remained a contender for my older child until the very end, although she opted for a different LAC with a strong music program. The fact that you obtained a music scholarship from such an exceptional program speaks well of your talent as well as the likelihood that you will be able to participate in it.
If learning has to go on line at some point again next year, you are likely to have a better experience if class size is small. It’s harder to convert large lecture classes, while maintaining the kind of student interaction that can happen in the classroom.
Some of the traditional qualities of large state universities (sports, Greek life, big parties) are likely to be curtailed for the foreseeable future. Not sure if those things attract you as St O lacks Greek life and is theoretically a dry campus. But I thought I’d mention it.
p.s. I also know the UW campus well and it has many strengths, academically and in terms of location. You have two good but very different choices. Congrats!
Agree with the above. At St. O you are assured of an excellent music experience and at UW, it’s unclear. Also at St. O the academics are excellent and they have individualized attention–this will definitely not be the case at UW until perhaps later years when you’re out of the basic courses of your field. While many find UW a charming town – it has a single street for fun – mentioned above and to my mind not that much else going for it. I think that St. O’s cute town has a similar degree of stuff to do plus you can get into the Twin Cities often enough. It’s also cheaper!!
From what I’ve garnered on this site, St. O is technically a dry campus but some say that in reality it’s “damp.”
The law school advice here is correct. For Law School you will need at least a 3.7 average and close to 170 or higher on the LSAT.
Here is how GPAs are figured
Here is info on what scores you need to get into a good law school
http://schools.lawschoolnumbers.com/
Most people agree that to guarantee that you will get a job after law school that 1) uses your degree and 2) pays your debt, you should go to a T15 law school. Or go to your local one and be in the top of your class. At lower law schools only the top of the classes get those sorts of jobs.
Best of luck to you-- and have fun!