The process of researching colleges, building a school list, and narrowing down which schools to apply to can be a stressful one (believe me, I’ve been there and done that!). Regardless of whether you’re already in college, or you’re a high school junior or high school senior thinking about college just around the corner, you’ve probably heard the term “Big 10 schools” thrown around in conversations about higher education.
But what does it mean?
The Big 10 is a conference of US universities that are most commonly known for their competitive athletic programs and a true sense of “bigness” that tends to yield an abundance of school spirit and pride.
Which schools make up the Big 10 conference? Here’s the full list of Big 10 schools:
Big 10 schools, because of their sheer size and student population, truly operate with the “go big or go home” mentality; each school in the conference boasts hundreds of course options across a wide variety of majors, along with dozens upon dozens of student organizations, campus activities, and overall possibilities!
In this next section, I’ll dive into all 14 of them, including basic information and how you can learn more if you’re interested in applying. (PS - don’t even get me started on why there are now 14 when it’s the Big 10!)
Anyways, are you ready? Here we go!
Location: Madison, Wisconsin
-Acceptance rate: 57%
-Average annual cost: $17,234
-Number of undergraduate students: ~31,700
-Graduation rate: 87%
-Fun fact: There is a tradition every winter where the two opposing dorm locations (Southeast and Lakeshore) have an epic snowball fight.
Learn more about applying to UW-Madison.
Location: Bloomington, Indiana
-Acceptance rate: 80%
-Average annual cost: $14,619
-Number of undergraduate students: ~32,600
-Graduation rate: 79%
-Fun fact: IU faculty have been awarded every major national and international prize including the Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize, Oscar Award and Emmy Award, as well as major research grants from the National Science, Ford, Guggenheim, Rockefeller and MacArthur foundations.
Learn more about applying to IU!
Location: College Park, Maryland
-Acceptance rate: 51%
-Average annual cost: $18,048
-Number of undergraduate students: ~30,200
-Graduation rate: 83%
-Fun fact: Parts of both National Treasure: Book of Secrets and St. Elmo’s Fire were filmed there.
Learn more about applying to UMD!
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
-Acceptance rate: 26%
-Average annual cost: $14,878
-Number of undergraduate students: ~31,100
-Graduation rate: 92%
-Fun fact: Their football stadium is the second largest stadium in the world!
Learn more about applying to UMich!
Location: Iowa City, Iowa
-Acceptance rate: 84%
-Average annual cost: $19,401
-Number of undergraduate students: ~22,000
-Graduation rate: 72%
-Fun fact: In 1855, the university became the first public university in the United States to admit men and women on an equal basis.
Learn more about applying to the University of Iowa!
Location: Lincoln, Nebraska
-Acceptance rate: 78%
-Average annual cost: $17,013
-Number of undergraduate students: ~20,100
-Graduation rate: 66%
-Fun fact: Their mascot is the corn husker!
Learn more about applying to the University of Nebraska!
Location: Columbus, Ohio
-Acceptance rate: 68%
-Average annual cost: $16,845
-Number of undergraduate students: ~45,900
-Graduation rate: 77%
-Fun fact: In 1926 the student body elected a cow, Maudine Ornsby, to be its Homecoming Queen.
Learn more about applying to OSU!
Location: New Brunswick, New Jersey
-Acceptance rate: 67%
-Average annual cost: $23,035
-Number of undergraduate students: ~35,400
-Graduation rate: 81%
-Fun fact: It is the birthplace of college football - in 1869 they beat Princeton in what is believed to be the first ever college football game.
Learn more about applying to Rutgers!
Location: University Park, Pennsylvania
-Acceptance rate: 78%
-Average annual cost: $27,530
-Number of undergraduate students: ~73,200
-Graduation rate: 71%
-Fun fact: Ben Cohen & Jerry Greenfield (Ben & Jerry’s) Took An Ice Cream-Making Class At Penn State before creating the company.
Learn more about applying to PSU!
Location: East Lansing, Michigan
-Acceptance rate: 81%
-Average annual cost: $19,058
-Number of undergraduate students: ~38,400
-Graduation rate: 76%
-Fun fact: MSU students could cover all 4 years of undergrad with only $30 from 1862 to 1865.
Learn more about applying to MSU!
Location: Evanston, Illinois
-Acceptance rate: 9%
-Average annual cost: $23,279
-Number of undergraduate students: ~8,400
-Graduation rate: 95%
-Fun fact: Lowest (by a lot!) acceptance rate out of all the Big Ten Schools.
Learn more about applying to Northwestern!
Location: West Lafayette, Indiana
-Acceptance rate: 67%
-Average annual cost: $13,377
-Number of undergraduate students: ~35,500
-Graduation rate: 75%
-Fun fact: Has its own airport - It is the first university-owned airport in the U.S.
Learn more about applying to Purdue!
Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota
-Acceptance rate: 70%
-Average annual cost: $17,878
-Number of undergraduate students: ~30,900
-Graduation rate: 80%
-Fun fact: The honeycrisp apple was developed at their horticulture center in 1974.
Learn more about applying to the University of Minnesota!
Location: Champaign, Illinois
-Acceptance rate: 63%
-Average annual cost: $14,321
-Number of undergraduate students: ~33,000
-Graduation rate: 86%
-Fun fact: Steve Chen and Jawed Karim, the founders of YouTube, are both Illinois alumni.
Learn more about applying to U of I!
Source for stats: College Scorecard
In the section above, I provided small informational tidbits about each of the Big 10 schools, with the hopes that you’ll head over to each school’s website to learn more if any of them catch your eye!
Ultimately, the process of deciding which colleges to apply to is a tough one. It requires you to do a significant amount of logistical research (looking at factors such as course options, cost, likelihood of acceptance, etc), but it also requires you to do some internal exploration along the way to help you narrow down which schools might be a good fit for you.
To help you out with that internal exploration, here are a couple of key questions I recommend you ask yourself (and answer!):
Ultimately, it’s difficult to provide a clear-cut answer on if the Big 10 schools are for you, or if they aren’t - this is something you’ll find out for yourself as you start or continue along your journey of researching schools, building a list, and learning more about yourself!
Although most of the Big 10 schools are similar in terms of having high levels of athletic and school spirit as well as large student bodies, at the end of the day, each one has its own unique programs, quirks, and offerings.