Life in Madison

Welcome to Madison!

The UWPA would like to welcome you to Madison, Wisconsin, and whether this is your first, or last postdoc position, we want to help make your time in Madison the best in can be.

Madison is small, but diverse, city and luckily that offers up a lot of opportunities to see a unique show or play, go to one of the summer festivals across the area, or enjoy the famous Memorial Union Terrace situated on lake Mendota.

This page will provide some helpful links to websites or organizations who have information on living in Madison, things to do, and what to see. Always remember that you can reach out to the UWPA, your fellow postdocs, or anyone in Madison for advice or suggestions.

Helpful sites to start

A great place to start reading about Madison area favorites, including restaurants, shops and more is Isthmus magazine’s annual City Guide section. It includes reader favorites from the year in Madison, and can be a good place to start to see what locals recommend. Isthmus is a free weekly periodical you’ll find across Madison and will usually have calendars of events around the city.

Another place with information is UW Health’s own Living in Madison page. The UW-Health page as information on Madison schools, and area child car programs for those postdocs with families.

Also, make sure to check out the Events page on the UWPA site. Throughout the year we will host postdoc specific outings, social hours, and other events for the 21+ crowd as well as family friendly events. If you have a suggestion or idea of something you would like to see, feel free to contact anyone on the UWPA Executive Council to pitch your idea. We’re always open to new ideas on how we can better enrich the experience of postdocs in Madison!