Thousands of Wisconsin high school students to be directly admitted to UW schools for 2025

by Henry Redman, Wisconsin Examiner
July 25, 2024

Starting next week, tens of thousands of high school students across Wisconsin will be directly admitted to Universities of Wisconsin schools without filing applications. 

The admissions are part of a new program, launched in December, to boost admission on the state’s public university campuses. 

Next week through September, students will start receiving emails letting them know they’ve been admitted. School districts across the state participating in the Direct Admit Wisconsin program shared student grade point averages and course credits with University of Wisconsin administrators for rising seniors. The program identifies if a student qualifies to be directly admitted to any of the 10 participating campuses. 

UW-Madison, UW-La Crosse and UW-Eau Claire are not participating. 

Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman said this week 50,000 students across 330 high schools are eligible under the program. 

In recent years, enrollment across the UW system has declined. Historically, more than 30% of the state’s high school graduates enroll in a UW school but that number had dropped to 27% in 2020. 

“These students have already demonstrated through their junior year of high school that they have the ability to succeed at one of our universities, and to put themselves on a path to a better life and to a better career,” Rothman said. 

Rothman said a number of students can expect to be admitted to multiple schools, but that the traditional application process will remain available, adding that officials hope the program opens a new pathway toward showing students that college is a possibility. 

“There will be the traditional application process,” he said. “But our hope is that this will allow us to connect with more students and have the opportunity to discuss with them why college may be a good fit for them, how they can be helped through a financial aid package, and really try to reach those students who would not have otherwise reached out to us.”

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