Seriously, UWM?

[warriorchick]

Check out UWM's campaign geared towards Illinois students.  I saw this on a billboard on I-294 last night.

http://uwm.edu/illinoisstudents/?utm_source=google&utm_campaign=illinois-recruitment&utm_medium=cpc&utm_content=brand2&gclid=CjwKEAiA9s_BBRCL3ZKWsfblgS8SJACbST7DQBZux4BxH8hZ-BMYwXOoKWoha3NLEvPcPcKjXhs_2RoCJwPw_wcB



That's some bullsh!t right there.

[Eldon]

They're going jab-for-jab with UIC (UIC has a billboard on I-794 that says UIC is "Chicago's Best University")

[warriorchick]

They're going jab-for-jab with UIC (UIC has a billboard on I-794 that says UIC is "Chicago's Best University")

Well, that's true, isn't it?  God forbid you'd have to go to a crappy school like Northwestern or the University of Chicago.

[MarquetteDano]

Well, that's true, isn't it?  God forbid you'd have to go to a crappy school like Northwestern or the University of Chicago.

Or DePaul or Loyola which are crappier than UIC as well.   

Maybe they meant the best PUBLIC university in Chicago? 

[jficke13]

Man paying out of state tuition for a directional school just doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Whether it's a WI kid going to a state school in Illinois that isn't the flagship or vice versa, the cost-benefit doesn't make sense.

[GGGG]

Man paying out of state tuition for a directional school just doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Whether it's a WI kid going to a state school in Illinois that isn't the flagship or vice versa, the cost-benefit doesn't make sense.

The reason is because the Illinois public universities have jacked up their in-state tuition, and have traditionally had more expensive room and board, making going out of state a more feasible option. 

Since UWM is part of the Midwest Student Exchange Program, Illinois residents planning to live on campus, can actually go to UWM cheaper than a place like NIU.  Even schools like Whitewater and Platteville are seeing huge increases in Illinois residents due to this cost difference.

Here is an article from this summer.

http://archive.jsonline.com/news/education/illinois-budget-woes-spark-uw-recruitment-full-court-press-b99766353z1-388336951.html

[Herman Cain]

Check out UWM's campaign geared towards Illinois students.  I saw this on a billboard on I-294 last night.

http://uwm.edu/illinoisstudents/?utm_source=google&utm_campaign=illinois-recruitment&utm_medium=cpc&utm_content=brand2&gclid=CjwKEAiA9s_BBRCL3ZKWsfblgS8SJACbST7DQBZux4BxH8hZ-BMYwXOoKWoha3NLEvPcPcKjXhs_2RoCJwPw_wcB



That's some bullsh!t right there.

UWM has a terrible image in the market. The first thing it needs to do is change the name of the school across the board to the University of Milwaukee.  Currently, they just get lumped in with all the other non flagship schools of the UW system.   They need to be a bit more aspirational.

[warriorchick]

UWM has a terrible image in the market. The first thing it needs to do is change the name of the school across the board to the University of Milwaukee.  Currently, they just get lumped in with all the other non flagship schools of the UW system.   They need to be a bit more aspirational.

And this is based on your POV living in New York?

Right or wrong,  the "University of Wisconsin " part is much better branding than the "Milwaukee" part.

[jficke13]

UWM has a terrible image in the market. The first thing it needs to do is change the name of the school across the board to the University of Milwaukee.  Currently, they just get lumped in with all the other non flagship schools of the UW system.   They need to be a bit more aspirational.

I honestly thought they were going to do that at some point or am I misremembering?

[jficke13]

The reason is because the Illinois public universities have jacked up their in-state tuition, and have traditionally had more expensive room and board, making going out of state a more feasible option. 

Since UWM is part of the Midwest Student Exchange Program, Illinois residents planning to live on campus, can actually go to UWM cheaper than a place like NIU.  Even schools like Whitewater and Platteville are seeing huge increases in Illinois residents due to this cost difference.

Here is an article from this summer.

http://archive.jsonline.com/news/education/illinois-budget-woes-spark-uw-recruitment-full-court-press-b99766353z1-388336951.html

Hmmm, honestly did not realize that.

I stand by my assessment that if you're going to an out-of-state state school that's not Michigan or Berkley, you are making a poor financial decision.

[GGGG]

Hmmm, honestly did not realize that.

I stand by my assessment that if you're going to an out-of-state state school that's not Michigan or Berkley, you are making a poor financial decision.

But if you are an Illinois resident, it can be cheaper to go to a Wisconsin school.  Wouldn't it be a poor financial decision to stay in state?

[GGGG]

I honestly thought they were going to do that at some point or am I misremembering?

They have tried to emphasize the "Milwaukee" more, but don't want to completely get rid of the "Wisconsin."  From a branding perspective, I don't know what they should do.  They want to be more of a research university but without an injection of state investment, that's not likely going to happen. 

[buckchuckler]

EH. Nevermind

[Herman Cain]

And this is based on your POV living in New York?

Right or wrong,  the "University of Wisconsin " part is much better branding than the "Milwaukee" part.

It is based on my point of view as a Wisconsin resident. UWM, Whitewater , Lacrosse, Green Bay, Eau Claire etc are all consider second tier. Everyone knows they are not the flagship, I am not saying that they are lousy institutions, but it is the image. Calling Yourself University of Milwaukee, takes you out of that stigma and puts you more in line with other schools named after a city like Louisville, Pittsburgh, Miami, Dayton, Denver,Tulsa, Detroit etc.  At the higher end of the city name you have Princeton, University of Chicago and New York University etc.

Also ,you would be surprised, Milwaukee as a city is well regarded in the rest of the country.

The only state that gets away with city names after their main University of is the UC system UCLA, UC Berkeley UCSD etc  they created a lower brand of schools called Cal State

The general rule is University of means the best. XYZ State Name State is next tier, Directional  State Name and University of Hyphenated-   are next in line. Then you have XYZ City State or XYZ County State and double directionals. A good  University of City name can sneak in there right after University of. Which is why I am advocated University of Milwaukee.

[warriorchick]

Calling Yourself University of Milwaukee, takes you out of that stigma and puts you more in line with other schools named after a city like Louisville, Pittsburgh, Miami, Dayton, Denver,Tulsa, Detroit etc.  At the higher end of the city name you have Princeton, University of Chicago and New York University etc.

You forgot University of Phoenix.

[Herman Cain]

You forgot University of Phoenix.

They are online so they dont fall into my analysis.

[keefe]

Frankly, I would put my degree from Central Luzon Institute of Technology up against any other sheepskin. You simply cannot lick that experience.

[WarriorFan]

I found the "Milwaukee's Best" reference very humorous.  Used to drink that sh1t back in the day.   It was cheaper than coca-cola. 

As for the ad campaign... what I've learned now doing college search with my oldest son is that there are a fair few universities saying to their prospective clientele that they would be a "cool" place to "hang out" for 4-6 years. Nothing about academics, nothing about excellence... it's all about facilities, campus life, recreation, luxury dorms with views, etc.  Milwaukee would definitely be one in that category.

[source?]

26,000 students? Weren't they at 30,000 a couple years ago?

[Herman Cain]

Frankly, I would put my degree from Central Luzon Institute of Technology up against any other sheepskin. You simply cannot lick that experience.

I saw what you did there.

[Eldon]

The reason is because the Illinois public universities have jacked up their in-state tuition, and have traditionally had more expensive room and board, making going out of state a more feasible option. 

Since UWM is part of the Midwest Student Exchange Program, Illinois residents planning to live on campus, can actually go to UWM cheaper than a place like NIU.  Even schools like Whitewater and Platteville are seeing huge increases in Illinois residents due to this cost difference.

Here is an article from this summer.

http://archive.jsonline.com/news/education/illinois-budget-woes-spark-uw-recruitment-full-court-press-b99766353z1-388336951.html

Was not aware of this.  Very interesting, thanks for posting.  I completely agree that if a UW@ school is cheaper (even after paying out-of-state tuition) than an in-state public school in Illinois, e.g., UIC, NIU, SIU, etc., then it's a no-brainer.

[jficke13]

But if you are an Illinois resident, it can be cheaper to go to a Wisconsin school.  Wouldn't it be a poor financial decision to stay in state?

Does that mean that Wisconsin schools are cheaper for Illinois residents than *all* Illinois schools? Just the Chicago ones? Because if it's cheaper to go to Southern Illinois (for example) than UWM, then, yes, it's a poor financial decision to pay more for a degree from what I think nationwide would be a comparable degree.

[GGGG]

Does that mean that Wisconsin schools are cheaper for Illinois residents than *all* Illinois schools?

Illinois schools can set their own in-state tuition rates, which is unlike Wisconsin, so I would have to check out each one of them.  Which I am not going to do.

And of course, since UWM is a different type of school than SIU, a couple thousand dollars a year may very well make it worthwhile. 

[Eldon]

It is based on my point of view as a Wisconsin resident. UWM, Whitewater , Lacrosse, Green Bay, Eau Claire etc are all consider second tier. Everyone knows they are not the flagship, I am not saying that they are lousy institutions, but it is the image. Calling Yourself University of Milwaukee, takes you out of that stigma and puts you more in line with other schools named after a city like Louisville, Pittsburgh, Miami, Dayton, Denver,Tulsa, Detroit etc.  At the higher end of the city name you have Princeton, University of Chicago and New York University etc.

Also ,you would be surprised, Milwaukee as a city is well regarded in the rest of the country.

The only state that gets away with city names after their main University of is the UC system UCLA, UC Berkeley UCSD etc  they created a lower brand of schools called Cal State

The general rule is University of means the best. XYZ State Name State is next tier, Directional  State Name and University of Hyphenated-   are next in line. Then you have XYZ City State or XYZ County State and double directionals. A good  University of City name can sneak in there right after University of. Which is why I am advocated University of Milwaukee.

UWM is a research university.  None of the other UW@ schools are research universities.  This is not a subjective assessment.  The Carnegie Foundation classifies UWM along with Bucky as the only research universities in the UW System.

So I can see UWM wanting to distinguish itself from the other UW@ schools.

But I'm not sure what changing the name would accomplish.  I've heard the argument of the pro-name-change people and it goes something like this: "We need to change our name.  The HYPHEN is killing our reputation.  Because we are not the flagship of the System, we are immediately looked down upon as Madison's dirty little stepbrother.  We need to shed that stigma."  Basically, this is your argument, MUFNY (at least as I read you).

I always point out that there is nothing wrong with being Madison's dirty little stepbrother.  Madison is a stellar research institution.  The VAST majority of public schools in the country are below Madison.  There is no shame in that.  As you yourself point out, UCLA has a hyphen.  It is not the flagship of the System.  Nonetheless, it is a great school.  As is UCSD.  The hyphen can be overcome.

Changing the name to "University of Milwaukee" or "Wisconsin State" will be a marginal improvement (if at all).  If UWM wants to shed it's "meh" reputation it needs to improve its "meh" funding.  Even if UWM were to change its name, everyone in the state would still recognize that it is second to Madison.  A name change won't change its relative reputation.

[GGGG]

UWM also has to start attracting higher caliber students.  Their first year retention and grad rates are terrible for a research school.