Higher Education Outcome Report · Midwest

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Wisconsin Higher Education Outcome Report

Updated continuously · 42 degree-granting institutions graded

Wisconsin's higher education system is a below-average mobility system. Median 10-year earnings sit at $54,146, +5% vs the national median.

advanced manufacturing
healthcare
agriculture & food

82
INSTITUTIONS: $54,146
MEDIAN EARNINGS: ▲ 5% vs natl; $20,030
AVG NET PRICE: 32 / 29
PUBLIC / PRIVATE

OUTCOME GRADE

B+

62/100 · #16 of 50

Wisconsin At A Glance

State-Level Intelligence

Institutions

42

155,284 students enrolled
Graduates / Year

~25,772

Estimated annual completers
Median Earnings
84th pct

$55,173

8th of 50 states
Mobility Score
9th pct

1.1%

42nd of 46 states
Talent Retention
88th pct

76%

First-year retention rate
Value Ratio
48th pct

2.7x

Earnings per net-price dollar

Top Industries Hiring Graduates:

Business
Social Sciences
Healthcare

Executive Summary

Wisconsin graduates earn a median of $55,173 a decade after entry, 13% above the national state average, ranking 8th of 50 states.
Upward mobility sits mid-pack: the state's institutions move bottom-quintile students into the top quintile at a 1.1% rate, in the 9th percentile nationally.
Degree production is led by Business and Social Sciences, which together account for 37% of graduates. That diversified mix sets what the state's labor pipeline can supply.
Technology is the standout sector: graduates earn $63,838, +23.8% versus the national median. That premium points to a real wage advantage rather than sheer volume.
On value, Wisconsin returns 2.7x earnings per dollar of net price, roughly average cost-to-outcome efficiency in the country.
The state's strongest mobility engine is Alverno College, which moves bottom-quintile students into the top quintile at a 2.7% rate, the highest in Wisconsin.

Key Insights

Earnings vs National

+3.6%

Median graduate earnings in Wisconsin are above the national average by 4%.
Cost vs National

-0.6%

Net price in Wisconsin is lower than the national average by 1%.
Mobility Rate

-0.72pp

Upward mobility rate is 0.7 percentage points below the national average.
Completion Rate

+1.7pp

Wisconsin's graduation rate is 1.7 percentage points above the national average.
Best Value

4.9x

Top value school: Lakeshore Technical College ($47,113 earnings vs $9,653 net price).
Low-Income Access

7.5%

8% of students come from bottom-quintile households, a measure of how open the state's colleges are to low-income students.

Education Output Profile

Business (24% of graduates) and Social Sciences (13% of graduates) dominate Wisconsin's higher education output. Graduates in the top field earn a weighted average of $55,256.

Business

24%

$55,256 avg
Social Sciences

13%

$57,048 avg
Healthcare

12%

$50,063 avg
Sciences

9%

$57,991 avg
Education

8%

$51,983 avg

Concentration: diversified HHI: 12

Outcome Performance

Wisconsin's highest-ROI degree cluster is Law (Legal Studies), where graduates average $55,241 against a net cost of $16,799, a 3.3x return. That's +7.1% vs the national median.

Legal Studies
3.3x

$55,241 earnings $16,799 net +7.1% vs natl
Humanities
3.1x

$51,502 earnings $16,447 net -0.1% vs natl
Engineering
3.1x

$60,898 earnings $19,940 net +18.1% vs natl
Mathematics & Statistics
3.0x

$56,881 earnings $19,241 net +10.3% vs natl
Physical Sciences
2.9x

$57,015 earnings $19,492 net +10.5% vs natl
Social Sciences
2.9x

$57,002 earnings $19,619 net +10.5% vs natl

State Talent Profile

Three lenses on Wisconsin's talent pipeline: which fields produce the most graduates, which command the highest earnings, and where high-pay demand outruns local supply.

Dominant Fields

Business & Marketing 24%
Health Professions 12%
Education 8%
Biology & Biomedical 8%
Engineering 7%

Highest-Earning Fields

Engineering $75,839
Computer Science & IT $58,864
Biology & Biomedical $58,406
Social Sciences $58,318
Communications $57,559

Opportunity Gaps

High earnings, low local production — fields where demand may outrun Wisconsin's graduate supply.

Computer Science & IT $58,864 6% of grads
Social Sciences $58,318 7% of grads
Communications $57,559 5% of grads

Mobility & Retention

Opportunity Insights

Wisconsin's colleges post an average mobility rate of 1.1%, which puts the state in the 9th percentile nationally. 6% of students arrive from bottom-quintile households. Cross-class social connectedness averages 1.62, a proxy for the networks that help graduates convert a degree into mobility.

MOBILITY RATE

1.1%

▼ -0.52pp vs natl

Bottom 20% → Top 20%
LOW-INCOME ACCESS

6%

From bottom quintile
SUCCESS RATE

24%

If bottom 20% enroll
FIRST-GENERATION

32%

First-gen students
TALENT RETENTION

76%

First-year retention
SOCIAL CAPITAL

1.62

Economic connectedness

Mobility Leaders — Institutions Driving Upward Movement

Labor Market Alignment

Wisconsin's Technology programs produce graduates earning $63,838, +23.8% relative to the national median.

Business
24% of enrollment

$54,828 +6.3% vs natl

34 schools
Social Sciences
13% of enrollment

$56,717 +10% vs natl

22 schools
Healthcare
12% of enrollment

$55,146 +6.9% vs natl

27 schools
Sciences
9% of enrollment

$59,218 +14.8% vs natl

14 schools
Education
8% of enrollment

$53,988 +4.7% vs natl

26 schools
Technology
7% of enrollment

$63,838 +23.8% vs natl

6 schools

Overperforming Sectors

Technology: +23.8% vs national earnings ($63,838)

Sciences: +14.8% vs national earnings ($59,218)

Social Sciences: +10% vs national earnings ($56,717)

Institutional Landscape

Wisconsin's higher education system includes 4 research-oriented, 7 specialized, 3 access-oriented, 28 regional institutions. Each group plays a different role in the state's outcomes.

4

Research Universities
28

Regional Universities
3

Access-Oriented Institutions
7

Specialized Institutions

Research Universities

Access-Oriented Institutions

Cost & Access Corridors

28% of Wisconsin's colleges charge under $15K net. Graduates of those schools average $45,337 at 10 years.

NET PRICE UNDER $15K

10

28% of schools
Avg earnings: $45,337
NET PRICE $15K–$25K

18

50% of schools
Avg earnings: $57,621
NET PRICE $25K–$40K

8

22% of schools
Avg earnings: $59,045

Top Earners

Schools ranked by median graduate earnings 10 years after enrolling.

Higher education in Wisconsin

Wisconsin is home to 82 colleges and universities, from 32 public institutions to 29 private nonprofits. University of Wisconsin-Madison anchors the public system, and graduates across the state earn a median of about $45,399 ten years after enrolling.

Higher education clusters around Milwaukee, Madison and Kenosha, and the strongest programs by enrollment are Health Professions, Business & Marketing and Computer Science & IT. We rank every school here by what its graduates actually earn and how far they move up — not by reputation or sticker price.

What college costs in Wisconsin

The average net price — what students actually pay after grants and scholarships — runs about $17,968 a year across Wisconsin. Northwood Technical College stands out on return: strong graduate earnings against a comparatively low net price. Public universities and in-state tuition remain the clearest path to a low-debt degree, while need-based aid can make selective private schools surprisingly competitive.

Most Affordable Schools

Jobs & industries

Wisconsin's economy leans on advanced manufacturing, healthcare and agriculture & food, which shapes which degrees pay off fastest in-state. Programs in Health Professions, Business & Marketing and Computer Science & IT feed directly into those employers, and graduates who stay in-region benefit from established hiring pipelines and alumni networks.

Licensure & transfer

Licensure and articulation are state-specific: nursing, teaching, law, and the health professions are regulated at the Wisconsin level, so an in-state program is often the most direct route to practicing here. Community-college transfer agreements with public universities can also cut the cost of a four-year degree substantially.

Cost vs Return

What graduates in Wisconsin earn relative to what they pay for college.

MEDIAN EARNINGS (10YR)

$45,399

▲ +$1,562 vs natl

AVG NET PRICE

$17,968

▲ $-108 vs natl

EARNINGS / COST RATIO

2.5x

Return per dollar invested

Best Value Schools

Is Wisconsin Right for You?

Wisconsin is a strong fit if you want to build a career in advanced manufacturing and healthcare, value in-state tuition, or plan to work in the region after graduation. Use the rankings and filters below to weigh earnings, cost, and mobility for every school in the state.

Every figure on this page is derived from public federal data and read within its regional and economic context. Information Gain Policy →

Related Rankings

Top Schools

Milwaukee School of Engineering · WI Marquette University · WI Bellin College · WI University of Wisconsin-Madison · WI University of Wisconsin-Platteville · WI University of Wisconsin-La Crosse · WI

FAQ

How many colleges are in Wisconsin?

There are 82 colleges and universities in Wisconsin in our dataset — 32 public, 29 private nonprofit.

What is the highest-earning college in Wisconsin?

By median graduate earnings 10 years out, Milwaukee School of Engineering leads, followed by schools like Marquette University and Bellin College.

How much does college cost in Wisconsin?

The average net price — tuition and living costs after grants — is about $17,968 per year. In-state public tuition is typically the lowest-cost path.

What are the best-paying career fields in Wisconsin?

Wisconsin's economy is anchored by advanced manufacturing, healthcare and agriculture & food, so degrees feeding those industries tend to pay off fastest in-state.

Is it worth going to college in Wisconsin?

For most students, yes — especially at in-state public universities and high-value private schools. Northwood Technical College, for example, pairs strong earnings with a low net price. Weigh earnings against net price using the data on this page.

All 82 schools in Wisconsin

Data Behind This Page Updated 2026

82 institutions in Wisconsin

2026 Last updated

100% Public / federal sources

Source datasets

Methodology

States are graded on graduate earnings, social mobility, completion, and cost — each drawn from federal data and Opportunity Insights research, then normalized into a single Outcomes Index (0–100).

See the full methodology and weights →

Confidence notes

Earnings, completion, and debt figures come from federal administrative records — tax data and student-aid filings — not surveys or self-reports, the highest-confidence tier of education data available.
Social-mobility estimates are drawn from de-identified tax records covering more than 30 million students (Opportunity Insights).
Where an institution is missing a metric, it is excluded from that metric rather than imputed, so averages are never inflated by guesses.

Limitations

Federal earnings data primarily cover students who received federal financial aid; outcomes for non-aided students may differ.
Earnings are measured roughly ten years after enrollment, so they describe how earlier cohorts fared — historical outcomes, not guarantees of future results.
An institution's field-of-study mix affects raw earnings; scores reflect measured outcomes and are not fully major-adjusted unless explicitly noted.
Net price is an average; the actual cost a given student pays varies widely by family income.

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