University of Nebraska–Lincoln vs. University of Wisconsin–Madison

A side-by-side comparison of Nebraska and Wisconsin — acceptance rates (87.8% vs. 40.8%), SAT scores (1070–1310 vs. 1400–1490), tuition, financial aid, and majors, drawn from each school's official Common Data Set.

Want to compare other schools? Open the interactive comparison tool →

NebraskaLincoln, NE

Acceptance rate

Total applicants, admitted students, and enrolled students for the most recent admission cycle.

87.8%acceptance rate
Applied
18,648
Admitted
16,372
Enrolled
4,734

Early admissions

Nebraska does not offer an Early Decision or Early Action plan; all applicants apply through Regular Decision.

Early Decision
Not offered
Early Action
Not offered
Restrictive EA
Not offered

Standardized tests

Nebraska is currently test-optional — you may apply without submitting scores.

SAT Accepted?

ACT Accepted?

Test Optional?

SAT Scores

4001600
25th Percentile
1070
50th Percentile
1190
75th Percentile
1310

ACT Scores

136
25th Percentile
21
50th Percentile
24
75th Percentile
28

Class rank

Where Nebraska's enrolled first-years placed in their high school graduating class.

Top tenth of class30%
Top quarter of class56%
Top half of class85%

Based on the 41% of enrolled students who reported a class rank. Nebraska does not publish an average GPA.

Admissions factors

How Nebraska weighs each part of your application.

→ Importance

Rigor of High School Record

Academic GPA

Standardized Test Scores

Application Essay

Recommendations

Extracurricular Activities

Character / Personal Qualities

Talent / Ability

First Generation

Level of Applicant's Interest

Class Rank

Volunteer Work

Work Experience

Geographical Residence

State Residency

Alumni Relation

Racial / Ethnic Status

Religious Affiliation

Cost of attendance

Estimated full-time annual cost from Nebraska's Common Data Set. Only tuition changes with residency.

2024–25 CDSNebraska's 2025-2026 Common Data Set hasn't published this section yet, so this figure is shown from the 2024-2025 edition instead.
$28,802
In-State
$48,032
Out-of-State
In-StateOut-of-State
Tuition & Fees
$11,100$30,330
Room & Board
$14,210$14,210
Other Expenses
$3,492$3,492
Total
$28,802$48,032

What families actually pay

$0–30k~$13k
$30–48k~$13k
$48–75k~$15k
$75–110k~$19k
$110k+~$22k

Average net price — what was left to pay after grant aid — for students receiving federal financial aid, covering in-state students only.

% of undergrads with Pell grants22.8%

Source: College Scorecard (2026)

Financial aid

Need-based aid statistics for full-time first-year students.

Receiving Aid
53%
Avg. Package
$11,938
Avg. Need Met
79%

Popular majors

Bachelor's degrees awarded in the past year by academic major.

Business & Marketing
Engineering
Communication / Journalism
Agriculture
Education
Biological Sciences
Psychology
Other
Business
22%
Engineering
10%
Comm/Journ
8%
Agriculture
7%
Education
7%
Life Sci
7%
Psychology
6%
Other
33%

Student-faculty ratio

The number of students for every one faculty member, indicating the average level of access students have to instructional staff.

17:1

Student outcomes

First-years who return86%
Graduate within six years69%
Median earnings, 4 yrs after graduation~$63k
Median federal loan debt at graduation~$21k

Median yearly income of former students who received federal aid, across every major, measured four years after graduating (2017–18 and 2018–19 graduates, earnings measured 2022–2023). Debt covers federal loans of students who completed.

Source: College Scorecard (2026)

Programs

Nebraska’s most popular programs and median pay after graduation. Income data from the US Department of Education’s College Scorecard.

Show all 29 programs

Median pay data is measured from graduates who received federal student aid.

Source: College Scorecard (2026) · IPEDS (2023-24) · ABET

Campus life

On-campus housing and Greek life participation rates.

First-Years On Campus
91%
In Fraternities
23%
In Sororities
29%

Place

How the federal government classifies the area around the campus, and what a normal year of weather looks like there.

Setting
Large city
Location
Lincoln, NE

Average temperature

Monthly high and low, °F
3614J
4118F
5429M
6539A
7551M
8562J
8967J
8764A
8054S
6741O
5228N
3918D
Snow a year
26 in
Precipitation a year
29 in
Days at 90°F or above
42
Days below 32°F
143

Thirty-year averages, measured at the nearest weather station rather than on campus — they describe the area, not the campus.

Source: IPEDS (HD2024) · NOAA 1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, LINCOLN MUNI AP, NE US station, 3.4 mi from campus

Enrollment by gender

51%
49%
Male
9,718
Female
9,495

Student diversity

Racial and ethnic breakdown of enrolled undergraduate students.

White75.4%
Hispanic10%
Other7.4%
Asian and Pacific Islander4%
Black2.9%
Native American<1%
WisconsinMadison, WI

Acceptance rate

Overall acceptance rate, plus the in-state and out-of-state admit rates the school reports separately.

UW–Madison CDSIn-state vs. out-of-state admit rates from UW–Madison CDS (Fall 2025).
40.8%acceptance rate
Applied
73,912
Admitted
30,167
Enrolled
8,495

Admit rate by residency

% admitted
In-state56.4%
5,672 admitted of 10,058 applicants
Out-of-state40.3%
19,948 admitted of 49,463 applicants

~1.4× higher admit rate for in-state applicants.

Early action

Wisconsin offers non-binding Early Action — an earlier decision with no commitment to enroll.

Early Decision
Not offered
Early Action
Non-binding
Restrictive EA
Not offered

Standardized tests

Wisconsin is currently test-optional — you may apply without submitting scores.

SAT Accepted?

ACT Accepted?

Test Optional?

SAT Scores

4001600
25th Percentile
1400
50th Percentile
1450
75th Percentile
1490

ACT Scores

136
25th Percentile
29
50th Percentile
31
75th Percentile
33

Class rank

Where Wisconsin's enrolled first-years placed in their high school graduating class.

Top tenth of class58.4%
Top quarter of class90.8%
Top half of class99.2%

Based on the 35.5% of enrolled students who reported a class rank. Wisconsin does not publish an average GPA.

Admissions factors

How Wisconsin weighs each part of your application.

→ Importance

Rigor of High School Record

Academic GPA

Standardized Test Scores

Application Essay

Recommendations

Extracurricular Activities

Character / Personal Qualities

Talent / Ability

First Generation

Level of Applicant's Interest

Class Rank

Volunteer Work

Work Experience

Geographical Residence

State Residency

Alumni Relation

Racial / Ethnic Status

Religious Affiliation

Cost of attendance

Estimated full-time annual cost from Wisconsin's Common Data Set. Only tuition changes with residency.

2024–25 CDSWisconsin's 2025-2026 Common Data Set hasn't published this section yet, so this figure is shown from the 2024-2025 edition instead.
$30,624
In-State
$62,649
Out-of-State
In-StateOut-of-State
Tuition & Fees
$12,166$44,191
Room & Board
$14,520$14,520
Other Expenses
$3,938$3,938
Total
$30,624$62,649

What families actually pay

$0–30k~$4k
$30–48k~$4k
$48–75k~$8k
$75–110k~$18k
$110k+~$27k

Average net price — what was left to pay after grant aid — for students receiving federal financial aid, covering in-state students only.

% of undergrads with Pell grants15.9%

Source: College Scorecard (2026)

Financial aid

Need-based aid statistics for full-time first-year students.

Receiving Aid
35%
Avg. Package
$36,138
Avg. Need Met
91%

Popular majors

Bachelor's degrees awarded in the past year by academic major.

Social Sciences
Business
Biological & Life Sciences
Engineering
Computing
Other
Social Sci
13.8%
Business
12.2%
Life Sci
11%
Engineering
10.9%
Computing
10.4%
Other
41.7%

Student-faculty ratio

The number of students for every one faculty member, indicating the average level of access students have to instructional staff.

18:1

Student outcomes

First-years who return96%
Graduate within six years90%
Median earnings, 4 yrs after graduation~$79k
Median federal loan debt at graduation~$20k

Median yearly income of former students who received federal aid, across every major, measured four years after graduating (2017–18 and 2018–19 graduates, earnings measured 2022–2023). Debt covers federal loans of students who completed.

Source: College Scorecard (2026)

Programs

Wisconsin’s most popular programs and median pay after graduation. Income data from the US Department of Education’s College Scorecard.

  • Computer & Information Sciences

    665 degrees (2023-24)

    ~$120kmedian pay, 4 yrs after graduation~$21k median debt
  • Finance

    470 degrees (2023-24)

    ~$107kmedian pay, 4 yrs after graduation~$20k median debt
  • Economics

    431 degrees (2023-24)

    ~$85kmedian pay, 4 yrs after graduation~$21k median debt
  • Psychology

    424 degrees (2023-24)

    ~$59kmedian pay, 4 yrs after graduation~$21k median debt
  • Biology

    354 degrees (2023-24)

    ~$69kmedian pay, 4 yrs after graduation~$21k median debt
Show all 35 programs

Median pay data is measured from graduates who received federal student aid.

Source: College Scorecard (2026) · IPEDS (2023-24) · ABET

Campus life

On-campus housing and Greek life participation rates.

First-Years On Campus
94%
In Fraternities
9%
In Sororities
8%

Place

How the federal government classifies the area around the campus, and what a normal year of weather looks like there.

Setting
Large city
Location
Madison, WI

Average temperature

Monthly high and low, °F
2710J
3113F
4324M
5635A
6847M
7858J
8262J
8060A
7352S
6039O
4527N
3216D
Snow a year
39 in
Precipitation a year
39 in
Days at 90°F or above
7
Days below 32°F
146

Thirty-year averages, measured at the nearest weather station rather than on campus — they describe the area, not the campus.

Source: IPEDS (HD2024) · NOAA 1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, CHARMANY FARM, WI US station, 4.1 mi from campus

Enrollment by gender

46%
54%
Male
18,068
Female
21,118

Student diversity

Racial and ethnic breakdown of enrolled undergraduate students.

White58.3%
Other18.3%
Asian and Pacific Islander11.2%
Hispanic9.2%
Black2.8%
Native American<1%

Writing your Nebraska or Wisconsin application essay?

Paste your draft and get specific, line-by-line feedback on what is and isn't landing — scored against the rubrics admissions readers use.

Get essay feedback

Nebraska vs. Wisconsin: frequently asked questions

Wisconsin is more selective: it admits about 40.8% of applicants, compared with 87.8% at Nebraska. Both are competitive, and your odds depend on far more than the overall rate.

The middle 50% of admitted students scored 1070–1310 at Nebraska and 1400–1490 at Wisconsin on the SAT. Treat the ranges as a benchmark — a score inside or above a school's range keeps you competitive there.

Nebraska has the lower published price for out-of-state students — $30,330 in tuition and fees versus $44,191 at Wisconsin, a gap of about $13,861 a year before financial aid.

Wisconsin graduates a higher share of its students within six years — 90% versus 69% at Nebraska.

Wisconsin, and only there. Wisconsin's Common Data Set rates the application essay important, while Nebraska reports that it does not consider the essay at all — so an application there rests on grades, course rigor, and test scores.

Source: University of Nebraska–Lincoln Common Data Set 2025-2026. Figures transcribed 2026-06-10. In-State Tuition & Fees and Out-of-State Tuition & Fees are from the 2024-2025 edition. Esslo aggregates publicly reported data and is not affiliated with Nebraska. Banner photo by Hanyou23, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Source: University of Wisconsin–Madison Common Data Set 2025-2026. Figures transcribed 2026-08-20. In-State Tuition & Fees and Out-of-State Tuition & Fees are from the 2024-2025 edition. Esslo aggregates publicly reported data and is not affiliated with Wisconsin. Banner photo by Chris Rycroft, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0).