Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents approved a proposal on June 4 to raise in-state tuition by 2% for the 2026-27 academic year, according to a press release.
The increase would be the fourth consecutive year tuition has been raised for students. University of Wisconsin-Madison in-state students will pay $210 more, while out-of-state students will see a variable increase in tuition depending on their school within the university. Additionally, a 3.5% annual increase in segregated fees is included in the proposal.
The Board of Regents stated in the release the increase would remain below the current inflation rate of 3.8% and is necessary to support rising operating costs in the UW school system.
“We recognize Wisconsin families are managing rising costs in every part of their lives, and that reality informed this proposal,” said UW system Interim President Renée Wachter. “This is a measured increase that helps our universities continue providing strong student support and high-quality academic experiences while keeping a UW education among the most affordable in the Midwest.”
In 2025, there was a 5% tuition increase, in 2024 a 3.75% increase and in 2023 a 5% increase. Before 2023, a 10 year tuition freeze was in place.
When testifying before the Senate Committee in April, Board of Regents President Amy Bogost and Regent Timothy Nixon stated that future tuition increases “weren’t written in stone” in an apparent effort to avoid another raise.
Sen. Patrick Testin, R-Stevens Point voiced his frustration when the Board ultimately approved the proposal.
“It is downright appalling that UW Board of Regents President Amy Bogost and Regent Timothy Nixon straight up lied to all our faces when they testified in front of the Senate Committee on Universities and Technical Colleges in April and told us they were not going to be raising tuition again this early,” he wrote in a statement. “Unfortunately, students and their families are the ones who will be paying the price for this dishonesty.”
Sen. Rachael Cabral-Guevara, R-Fox Crossing, shared her disappointment with the UW System administration increasing tuition.
“During the hearing on the firing of the UW System president, Regent Bogost assured the committee that a tuition increase was not yet finalized. Yet the UW System is once again growing administrative bloat on the backs of students,” Cabral-Guevara told the Cardinal. “Even the regents admit they need to find efficiencies and focus on high-demand career paths. Unfortunately, those goals were ignored in favor of a simple cash grab.”
The proposed in-state undergraduate tuition and segregated fees for each university in 2026-27 are as follows:
UW-Eau Claire: $10,268
UW-Green Bay: $9,133
UW-La Crosse: $10,563
UW-Madison: $12,416
UW-Milwaukee: $11,153
UW-Oshkosh: $9,180
UW-Parkside: $8,851
UW-Platteville: $9,007
UW-River Falls: $9,448
UW-Stevens Point: $9,692
UW-Stout: $10,289
UW-Superior: $9,477
UW-Whitewater: $8,984
Grace Carlson is the college news editor for The Daily Cardinal. As a staff writer, she's written in-depth on city Wisconsin politics, including the 2025 and 2026 State Supreme Court elections, as well as focusing on community coverage. Grace is interning at WisPolitics this summer.
