The UW System accounts for $9.5 billion in the Wisconsin state economy, according to a report presented Thursday at the Board of Regents meeting. This is a $1.3 billion increase since the last study in 1996.
\These figures further confirm that the UW System is one of Wisconsin's main economic engines,"" UW System President Katharine Lyall said in a statement.
This means that the UW System is responsible for the equivalent of 5.5 percent of the gross state product in 2000 and 150,699 jobs statewide.
David J. Ward, president of NorthStar Economics, conducted the study. He emphasized the positive impact of the results for students.
""The return for students is very good,"" he said. ""Granted, they pay tuition and their costs have risen over the last 10 years, but the earnings for college graduates are simply growing far faster than they are for high school graduates. There's almost a 100 percent difference in earnings on average now and it's just expanding.""
The study also shows that UW System graduates will be paid back for their university education within three years, Ward said.
While nearly 70 percent of the UW System's $3.3 billion infrastructure does not come from state dollars, the study shows that for each state dollar put into the system, there will be $10 of in economic activity in return, Ward said. This number remains the same over the last six years.
""This money ripples back down through the economy and has an economic impact,"" said John Torphy, vice chancellor of administration at UW-Madison.
Last spring when political pundits debated how to allocate state funds, many expressed the importance of the UW System to the economic success of Wisconsin.
""I think [the study] is very good evidence of what we've been saying,"" said Linda Weimer, vice president for university relations for the UW System.
Lyall said she agrees.
""We hope that legislators and the public understand that higher education is one of Wisconsin's major economic clusters,"" she said.
This is supported financially. Ward said the state is reimbursed in less than 10 years for each student who receives a bachelor's degree in the system. This is because college graduates have higher-paying jobs and will therefore pay more in taxes.
These results are despite an economic downturn and multiple state budget cuts to the university in the years since the previous study.
