When the academic year ends, thousands of University of Wisconsin-Madison don’t leave — and the Madison economy thrives because of it.
UW-Madison students make up more than 16% of the city’s population, and their presence as workers and consumers stretches well into the summer months. More than 11,000 undergraduate students enrolled in summer classes for the 2025 summer session, and the university’s office of student financial aid lists close to 15,000 jobs available through the university alone.
For many students who stay, work is a necessity.
“I really didn’t think it’d be productive not to work because I’m paying rent,” Brendan Angel, a junior studying finance and information systems, told The Daily Cardinal. “I think it’s annoying how a lot of us have to keep paying rent for the summer.”
Angel, who works part-time as a DJ at Chasers 2.0, said his schedule fits well around his summer life.
“For me, it’s nice because the job right now is Thursday, Friday and Saturday — and so is DJing,” Angel said. “That’s why I kind of like these types of jobs because during the school year — during the week — I can just kind of have my free time to do what I want.”
Local businesses throughout downtown Madison often tailor their summer strategies around students' needs. One example is local Wisconsin-themed retail store Wisconsin Design Team (WDT).
Catie Harris, a WDT employee, told the Cardinal WDT employs students in a variety of positions, including sales, internships, marketing and journalism. She said WDT “could not operate as it does” without the support UW students provide.
“Having students on our team allows us to stay continuously connected with our audience and remain informed about campus-related news,” Harris said.
Another local business, Mad City Moving (MCM), took the opportunity to expand their business to the student community with student moving and storage services.
MCM owner Brenda Roessler told the Cardinal her business stepped in to help students move when some private apartments stopped doing so during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We found that as an opportunity to assist students and out-of-state parents in the process to make it smoother,” Roessler said.
Roessler also discussed MCM’s philanthropic efforts. In collaboration with the Department of Financial Aid, University Housing and two students, MCM supports Badger Reclaim — an initiative allowing students to discard unwanted items at a pick-up point. MCM then provides transportation and storage of the items for future distribution.
“That’s really the biggest thing that I can take away with the students: how we’re now able to assist students who have items at move-out in May that they no longer want,” Roessler said.
Both MCM and WDT also consider the impacts of seasonal mobility.
During the 2020 census, Wisconsin created a Complete Count Committee (CCC) to ensure students who moved away during the summer recess would still be counted.
After spring move-out, Roessler said household moving keeps her business steady during the summer, instead showing a slowdown during the winter months.
“We stay pretty steadily busy from April through October, and then it’s a slower season during November through the winter,” Roessler said.
WDT’s Harris said the busiest time of year coincides with the first and last weeks of the school year, with the business pivoting towards Wisconsin residents during slower months.
“With many students leaving town, we design collections geared towards people who live in [and] are from Wisconsin and the Midwest as a whole, rather than just our student audience,” Harris said.
As a whole, Harris stressed the importance of students on WDT’s operations.
“Students have an incredibly large impact on WDT,” Harris said. “Our brand could not operate as it does without the engagement and support we get from UW students.”
Ted Hyngstrom is a staff writer. He formerly served as the Podcast Editor, and has covered a variety of city and campus issues. You can follow him on X at @NuffTed.
