Research wrote:
Research?
Big news, UW Madison had more patents in 2008 than (gulp) Harvard. And more the year before that. In fact, UW consistently averages more research patents than Harvard.
http://www.iptoday.com/articles/2008-9-oldach2.asp
Easy there.
I wasn't talking about the research the faculty do; I was referring to the ease of working for said faculty as an undergrad. It's easier to find opportunities amongst 6,000 students than amongst 30,000.
And I'm not pitting UW against Ivy on the basis of pure research alone - the comparison cuts across too many disciplines to be meaningful to someone in any one field. You can look at patents, but then again, you could look at Nobel prizes, and the comparison will be different. Either way, it doesn't directly apply to an undergrad decision.