Most Wisconsinites with UW bachelor’s degree still in state 5 years post-grad

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A Universities of Wisconsin “Facts and Trends” report released Wednesday showed that nearly 90% of state residents with a UW bachelor’s degree were still living in Wisconsin five years after graduation, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. Ten percent of graduates originally from Minnesota had remained in Wisconsin, along with 16% of graduates from other parts of the U.S. or world.

Other key report findings include:

  • The proportion of Wisconsin’s high school graduates attending college — including private and technical schools — is below the national average and that of most surrounding states;

  • When room and board costs are included, the total average attendance cost for resident undergraduates in the 2024–25 academic year will go up by roughly 3.8%;

  • Around 60% of all UW students received financial aid in 2022–23;

  • Wisconsin’s public funding of four-year higher education ranks No. 43 out of the 50 states;

  • International student enrollment, which dropped during the COVID-19 pandemic, has recovered and is increasing;

  • Veteran enrollment has seen a decline; and 

  • Almost four of every 10 degrees conferred are in STEM or health care fields.

Additional information is available here.

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