Bachelor's · Madison, Wisconsin

Is Computer Engineering at University of Wisconsin-Madison worth it?

Medium confidence Medium confidence: 40–99 graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Pays back fast: graduates typically recover the cost in about 1.5 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $97,234; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $128,968; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $15,000; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $70k (likely $70k – $81k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $88k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in WI; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 1.5 years (likely 1.3–1.9); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: $591k (likely $446k – $745k); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $1.61M (likely $1.28M – $1.99M); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 90%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26