A new engineering building: The case for growth
Each year, many more students apply to the College of Engineering than the college has the capacity to educate. Both nationally and in Wisconsin, there is growing demand for engineering graduates whose educational preparation enables them to make an immediate impact in the workplace. The College of Engineering can help meet that need with exceptional engineers, but we need to expand access to an outstanding engineering education, and that growth starts with more space.
A new, state-of-the-art building is a critical starting point in our ability to provide a hands-on education to many more engineering students and help keep pace with industry growth. Our aim is to increase our undergraduate enrollment from 4,500 students to 5,500. A new building will provide us the necessary space to accept additional students, enable us to recruit and retain the top-tier faculty members we need to educate them, and to sustain our excellence in research and graduate education. This expansion is a top priority for UW-Madison.
One building, two phases
Phase 1 details
Target open date
Fall 2025
Square feet
7 floors • 170,000 total
Timeline
January 2020-April 2020—advance planning
July 2021-July 2023—design, approvals and bidding
August 2023-August 2025—construction
Cost estimate
$150 million (if timeline is extended beyond 2023, assume 6% annual increase)
Cost breakdown
State—67% of projected total, based on timeline
College—33% from gifts and grants
Phase 2 details
Target open date
Fall 2027
Square feet
7 floors • 150,000 total
Timeline
January 2022-January 2023—advance planning
July 2023-July 2025—design, approvals and bidding
August 2025-August 2027—construction
Cost estimate
$150 million (if timeline is extended beyond 2025, assume 6% annual increase)
Cost breakdown
State—33% of projected total, based on timeline
College—67% from gifts and grants
Talent, technologies and the Wisconsin Idea
Developing engineering leaders
Ranked among the best engineering schools in the country, the College of Engineering admits outstanding students. Their experiences in our college and at UW-Madison empower and enable them to further grow as thinkers, doers, professionals and leaders. They learn from top researchers who weave their research into their teaching, creating a learning environment rich with context, new ideas and discourse that benefit and inspire everyone. And 100% of our students learn engineering by doing it, whether in classrooms or laboratories, through internships and co-operative work experiences, student organizations, community service, or creative projects they realize in their free time.
Extending our impact
Engineering faculty, staff and students are at the forefront of research and innovation, and they enhance the Wisconsin economy in many ways. They disclose more than 100 inventions annually, and generate more than $100 million each year in research expenditures. Engineering research and technological advances have led to dozens of companies founded by faculty, staff, students and alumni. A diverse array of engineering research centers, institutes and consortia builds on our rich tradition of cross-disciplinary research, advances knowledge and discovery, creates connections with industry and the private sector. Our alumni live and work in every corner of Wisconsin. And underlying all of our efforts is the strength of UW-Madison—one of the leading research universities in the world.
Growing talent in Wisconsin
52%
engineering undergrads from Wisconsin
50%
Wisconsin employers that recruit our engineers
70%
of our graduates stay and work in the Midwest
140+
Wisconsin cities with full-time engineering job postings
16k
engineering alumni who live in Wisconsin
49k
engineering alumni worldwide
How you can help
Creating a modern teaching and research facility is key to attracting top students, faculty and researchers—which in turn is critical in generating research funding, educating tomorrow’s engineering leaders, and enhancing the college’s national reputation.
By supporting a new College of Engineering building, you’ll help build the state’s science, technology and engineering workforce and keep Wisconsin companies competitive.
Contact us at engrbuilding@engr.wisc.edu to learn how you can get involved in advocating for this project.