Direct Admit Wisconsin

What is Direct Admit Wisconsin?

• Direct Admit Wisconsin is an initiative by the Universities of Wisconsin to proactively offer admission to qualifying high school students in between their junior and senior years of high school. Direct admission removes the traditional application process and instead uses data provided by the high school to admit students to universities.

Will other UW universities join?

• Each academic year, UW universities and school districts will be given the opportunity to continue participation or join if they have not participated in previous years. Currently, only some Universities of Wisconsin are involved in direct admission. The list of participating universities is listed below the FAQ section on this page.

Will Wisconsin private colleges and technical schools join Direct Admit Wisconsin?

• Direct Admit Wisconsin is a Universities of Wisconsin initiative. Currently, it does not include the Wisconsin Technical Colleges or Wisconsin private colleges.

Are ACT/SAT scores used in the direct admission process?

• Test scores are not a factor in direct admission. However, a student may need to submit test scores to their selected UW university for scholarships or course placement

Are spots being saved for direct admit students? Will this reduce the number of spots for other students?

• Participating UW universities have the capacity to serve direct admit students and any students who apply through the traditional application process. Direct Admit Wisconsin will not reduce the chance of admission for a student who applies. Direct admission and the traditional application are separate processes, and one does not impact the other.

Is the offer of admission to the university or to a specific program/major?

• The Direct Admit admission offer is to the UW university. Some UW universities or majors have a secondary admission process in which students need to apply to be admitted into a specific academic program. Students are encouraged to contact the UW university or academic program they are interested in directly to determine if there are additional requirements to be admitted into a program/major.

What are the eligibility requirements for students?

• First, you must be enrolled in a participating school district and opt to participate in the program. Then, if you are on track to complete the credits required for admission – 4 units of English, 3 units of approved math, 3 units of social science, 3 units of natural science, and 4 additional academic units – you will receive an admission offer through Direct Admit Wisconsin.

Are students required to participate if the district has chosen to participate?

• No, Direct Admit Wisconsin is not a mandatory program. Depending on the high school, the student will have the option to either opt in to the program or opt out of participation.

What do students need to do to participate?

• Students need to be enrolled as a junior (Class of 2025) and agree to participate. Participation is facilitated by the high school. Students will need to meet the direct admission criteria to receive admission offers through Direct Admit Wisconsin.

Is there a cost or fee to participate?

• No. There is no fee or cost to opt in or submit the Direct Admit form for students

When and how do students opt-in/opt-out for the Direct Admit Wisconsin program?

• Students in the Class of 2025 at participating high schools will agree to participate during the spring semester of their junior year. In the future, the choice to participate will become a part of the regular registration process for incoming junior students. Each high school will determine the best way to facilitate the participation process for their students. 

What is the deadline for students/families to opt in?

• Students and families for the Class of 2025 must opt in by June 3, 2024.

What are students and families agreeing to when they choose to participate?

• They are agreeing to share information with the Universities of Wisconsin so that we can provide a streamlined acceptance process into participating UW universities. Opting in also provides consent to receive communications about Direct Admit Wisconsin.

With whom are student data shared?

• Student data are shared with staff in Universities of Wisconsin Administration by the district to facilitate Direct Admit Wisconsin.

What student data need to be shared?

• The high school will share the following student data with Universities of Wisconsin: High school and district information, student name, WISEid, high school student ID, graduation year, physical address, school email address, GPA, legal sex, and race/ethnicity. Federal guidelines require us to collect race/ethnicity information and will be used in aggregate for federal reporting. Demographic information is not a factor in the direct admission decision process.

When and how do students get Direct Admit letters? Who are they from?

• Students will receive their Direct Admit offer of admission letter in a communication sent to them via email, hard copy letter and/or their high school student portal in late July. The letter is an official admission offer letter from the Universities of Wisconsin and will list the UW universities/campuses that the student is admitted to.

What if a student wants to attend a university that is not participating in Direct Admit Wisconsin?

• Students continue to have the option to complete the Universities of Wisconsin online application for universities that are not participating in Direct Admit Wisconsin. Some universities also accept the Common App. Students can wait to receive admission decisions from other schools before accepting a direct admit or traditional admission offer. 

How are Direct Admit offers accepted? Do students still need to fill out an application?

• Students need to complete the Direct Admit form to claim their direct admission offers. The offer letter will link to the Direct Admit Wisconsin online portal for students to provide more information and to indicate which UW universities/campuses they would like to attend, explore, or learn more about. There is no fee for accepting admission offers and no limit to the number of offers that can be accepted. Direct Admit students do not need to fill out the Universities of Wisconsin application.

What if a student fails to graduate from high school or meet the admission requirements during senior year?

• Direct Admit students must complete the requirements for admission during the senior year and graduate from high school. If not, admission offers will be rescinded.

Are there resources to help students choose which UW is right for them?

• UW HELP has robust resources and information to help students and families explore the Universities of Wisconsin and discover which campus is right for them. Students can reach out to the UW HELP team at uwhelp@uwsa.edu, 800-442-6459, or visit the website to access a live chat.

When and how can the Class of 2026 opt-in to Direct Admit Wisconsin?

• For the Class of 2026, participating high schools will include the direct admission opt-in/opt-out and information release form in registration materials for the 2024-25 school year. This will streamline the process for students and families.

Are students required to participate if the district has chosen to participate?

• No, Direct Admit Wisconsin is not a mandatory program. Each high school can choose to have students opt in or opt out of participation.

How are students matched with participating UW universities?

• Each participating UW university has its own GPA and course requirements. Students are matched with participating UW universities using progress towards graduation, whether they are on track to complete the required credits for admission to the Universities of Wisconsin and their unweighted cumulative GPA.

What do staff need to do to set up their student information system (SIS)?

• It depends on which student information system your district uses. Toolkits and instructions on how to do the setup process in participating Student Information Systems (Skyward, Infinite Campus, PowerSchool) are still being finalized and will be made available to schools soon. The expectation is that the setup process will take less than 30 minutes. More information for school staff is available in the online High School Tool Kit. If you need access to the online tool kit, please contact us at directadmitwi@uwsa.edu. 

When and how will training be provided?

• We are working with the SIS vendors to plan virtual training and ensure adequate technical support during the setup process. Additional training and promotional materials are available in the online high school toolkit. 

What do students and families agree to when they opt in?

• They agree to share the information outlined in the data agreement between the school district and the Universities of Wisconsin and agree to receive communications about Direct Admit Wisconsin.

With whom are student data shared?

• Student data are shared with Universities of Wisconsin Administration staff by the district to facilitate Direct Admit Wisconsin.

Why is a data sharing agreement needed?

• The data sharing agreement is a contract between the Universities of Wisconsin and the participating school districts that outlines how we will use and protect the data you are providing for students who participate in direct admission.

What student data need to be shared?

• The high school will share the following student data with Universities of Wisconsin: High school and district information, student name, WISEid, high school student ID, graduation year, physical address, email address, GPA, legal sex, and race/ethnicity. Federal guidelines require us to collect race/ethnicity information and is used in aggregate for federal reporting. Demographic information is used for assessment and is not a factor in the direct admission decision process.