By ensuring that every Wisconsin student is given the full opportunity to get a higher education, we will improve those lives directly while building the economic engine and community prosperity that benefit all Wisconsinites

Jay Rothman
University of Wisconsin System President

The University of Wisconsin-Superior, along with all UW System universities, is offering the Wisconsin Tuition Promise starting fall 2023 to new students who qualify.

The new UW System-wide initiative seeks to ensure underserved Wisconsin students can attend the University of Wisconsin-Superior or any UW System school without paying tuition or fees. The goal is to increase the number of state residents who graduate with a bachelor’s degree – especially first-generation students and those from low-to-moderate income families throughout Wisconsin – thereby improving individual lives and communities and helping meet the state’s workforce needs.

“We’re excited that this program will make a great UW-Superior education even more accessible,” said Jeremy Nere, UW-Superior senior enrollment officer. “We are urging all first-time bachelor or associate-degree applicants for fall 2023 who are Wisconsin residents to complete their FAFSA as soon as possible to determine if they are eligible. One of the great things about this program is that our online students are eligible as well as our students studying on-campus.”

The Wisconsin Tuition Promise provides up to four years of tuition and fee funding for students coming from families earning less than $62,000 annually and enrolling at UW-Superior or any of the other 12 public universities within the UW System. The program would be structured to provide “last dollar” financial support after federal and state grant aid is accounted for; as a result, Tuition Promise awards will vary.

Eligible students will be Wisconsin residents, first-time enrollees or transfers, and attending full-time either on campus or online. They will need to make sufficient academic progress each year and attest that they were employed at some point during the previous year.

University of Wisconsin System President Jay Rothman said the affordability review he sought shows a UW System education is the most affordable in the Midwest and is very affordable nationally compared to peers. However, fewer low-to-moderate-income and first-generation students are attending UW System universities, suggesting that despite a tuition freeze in place since 2013, a state college education is increasingly out of reach for some, he said.

“Education unlocks success in Wisconsin,” Rothman said. “By ensuring that every Wisconsin student is given the full opportunity to get a higher education, we will improve those lives directly while building the economic engine and community prosperity that benefit all Wisconsinites.”

Students will be automatically considered for the Wisconsin Tuition Promise when they apply for federal financial aid via the FAFSA. More information can be found at: wisconsin.edu/tuition-promise