15 top-tier colleges wanted her. She chose UW–Madison. Here’s why.

Throughout high school, Lauren Choi stayed tightly focused on her postsecondary education goals. She wanted to have multiple options when choosing a college.

"I'm not someone who likes to feel constrained," says Choi, of Appleton, Wisconsin.

She applied to 20 universities and was accepted to 15, a testament to her academic accomplishments and the many student leadership positions she held at Appleton North High School. In the end, she chose the only school she applied to in her home state, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, even though it started low on her list.

"I shocked even myself," says Choi, now a freshman at UW-Madison. "The school I had never really considered became my most obvious choice."

What won her over? A combination of things, including UW-Madison's world-class reputation, the friendliness of the campus community and a financial aid offer she couldn't refuse.

Casting a wide net

Growing up, Choi watched her sister, Ashley, 12 years older, earn a bachelor's degree in psychology from UW-Madison. The family connection could have made becoming a Badger even more appealing. Yet it had the opposite effect.

"I felt like my sister had already laid claim to the school," Choi says. "As the younger sibling, I was always compared to my sister. Our looks, our humor, even our laugh is scarily the same. So going to Madison felt like another copycat situation."

Choi was determined to strike out on her own - and she had the résumé to be choosy. She had made a name for herself at her high school, despite a class size of 436. Her senior year, she was vice president of the student council and served as the student member on the Appleton Area School District Board of Education. She was president of both the overall student body and the homecoming planning committee. At commencement, she was one of several valedictorians and gave remarks on behalf of the graduating class. During her high school years, she competed in golf and track and field and volunteered for numerous community organizations.

In applying to colleges, Choi cast a wide net. Numerous Big Ten Conference schools admitted her - Pennsylvania State University, Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, the University of Minnesota and the University of Illinois - as did many others, including Syracuse University, North Carolina State University, the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of California Santa Barbara.

And then Choi visited UW-Madison, the school she had previously sworn off. What she experienced changed her calculus completely.

Finding her way home

As Choi began to narrow the field, she toured the UW-Madison campus.

"I was struck by how happy everyone seemed," she says. "I know that college can, at times, be stressful, so this really made an impression on me."

UW-Madison offered a highly respected program in her intended major, political science, and she saw deep campus support for students from backgrounds like hers. Her parents immigrated to the U.S. from South Korea. Her father is a roofer, her mother a stay-at-home parent. Neither has a college degree.

"I was so impressed with the support system UW-Madison has built for first-generation college students, underrepresented minority students, and students from low-income households," Choi says.

UW-Madison closed the deal by offering her Bucky's Pell Pathway, which pledges to meet the full financial need for four years for all first-year students who are Wisconsin residents and qualify for federal Pell Grants. Pell Grants play a critical role in expanding college access for students in low-income households. The UW-Madison initiative adds to the federal grants by covering not just tuition and fees but also housing, meals, books and most other educational expenses.

Several universities offered to cover Choi's full tuition for four years, but that still left tens of thousands of dollars of other educational costs and living expenses. UW-Madison was the only institution that provided comprehensive funding, according to Choi.

Bucky's Pell Pathway is helping ensure that exceptional students like Lauren know that their home state not only has an institution that provides a world-class education, but is one that wants to support them.

Derek Kindle

"I couldn't believe Bucky's Pell Pathway covered everything," she says. "My whole family was in shock."

Derek Kindle, vice provost for enrollment management at UW-Madison, says Choi's story underscores how major financial aid initiatives like Bucky's Pell Pathway, Bucky's Tuition Promise, and the Wisconsin Tribal Educational Promise Program have become powerful recruiting tools for the university.

"Bucky's Pell Pathway is providing a path to a debt-free bachelor's degree for thousands of students from Wisconsin every year, which is wonderful," Kindle says. "But just as importantly, Bucky's Pell Pathway is helping ensure that exceptional students like Lauren know that their home state not only has an institution that provides a world-class education, but is one that wants to support them. Our campus benefits greatly from the talented students in our state, and we know that these students will graduate and do incredible things in and for their communities."

Paving her own path

In addition to receiving Bucky's Pell Pathway, Choi learned she was eligible to be part of the Center for Educational Opportunity (CeO) on campus. It provides a wide range of academic and other support services for first-generation students, students with disabilities, and students who meet federal family income guidelines.

"They understand the struggles of being a first-generation student," Choi says. "They've been a very good baseline community for me."

She now works part time for CeO, helping to plan events for other first-year students. Choi says her experience with CeO has helped confirm that she made the right college choice.

"I've definitely found my home here."

As for that delicate sibling issue, Choi says she's made peace with following in her big sister's footsteps.

"It's honestly been very helpful," she says. "She's given me great advice - too many times to count."

For more information on Bucky's Pell Pathway and many other financial aid initiatives at UW-Madison, please see financialaid.wisc.edu.

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