The student population at University of Wisconsin-Madison is 51,044 (38,040 undergraduate and 13,004 graduate students) . The number of students has increased by 8,328 (19.50%) over the past decade.
- Class Level: The percentage of undergraduate students at UW - Madison is 74.52% which is increased by 7,049 over last 10 years. The graduate student population increased by 1,279 and it has been increasing.
- Gender Breakdown: In 2025, there were 88 male students for every 100 female students, down from 97 in 2015.
- 1,454 students enrolled in online degree program exclusively and the number of online students has increased by 120.30% since 2015.
Student Population Changes
The average student population over the last 11 years is 45,726 where 51,044 students are attending the school for the academic year 2024-2025.
Total enrollment fluctuated between 2016 and 2025, with 8 year-over-year increases and 1 decrease. It peaked at 51,044 students in 2025 and was lowest at 42,582 in 2017. Overall, enrollment rose from 42,716 to 51,044 students, a net gain of 8,328 (19.5%).
The following table and chart illustrate the changes in student population by gender at University of Wisconsin-Madison since 2015.
Undergraduate Enrollment Changes
The average number of Undergraduate students over the last 11 years is 33,580 where 38,040 students are attending the Undergraduate school for the academic year 2024-2025. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in Undergraduate enrollment by attending status and gender at University of Wisconsin-Madison since 2015.
Graduate Enrollment Changes
The average number of Graduate students over the last 11 years is 12,145 where 13,004 students are attending the Graduate school for the academic year 2024-2025. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in Graduate enrollment by attending status and gender at University of Wisconsin-Madison since 2015.
Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity Changes
The percentage of white students is 56.24%. The percentage was 70.83% 10 years ago and UW - Madison still has a high percentage of white students. 9.71% of enrolled students is Asian and 2.65% is black students. Hispanic students comprise 7.97% of the student body.
Over the past 10 years, the racial composition has shifted. The percentage of white students decreased from 70.83% to 56.24%. Asian enrollment grew from 5.25% to 9.71%. Black student enrollment increased from 2.23% to 2.65%. Hispanic student representation expanded from 4.65% to 7.97%.
The overall racial diversity, measured by the Census Bureau Diversity Index, is 0.6652 which indicates that moderately diverse. This increased from 0.4922 a decade ago, suggesting that racial diversity has improved.
The following table and chart illustrate the student population trends by race/ethnicity at University of Wisconsin-Madison over the past 11 years (2015-2025).
Distance Learning (Online Courses) Enrollment Changes
1,454 students are enrolled in online degree programs exclusively for the academic year 2024-2025, which is 3% of total students. The number of online students has increased 120.30% since 2015. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in the online student population by enrolled type at University of Wisconsin-Madison from 2015 to 2025.