University of Wisconsin - Superior College Portrait

Typical Undergraduate Costs for 2011-12 without Financial Aid (Full-Time, In-State Students)

Total Typical Cost of Attendance: $17,682.00

We will know 2012-13 Tuition and other costs in early July 2012.

Out-of-State & Other Costs

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The cost to attend University of Wisconsin - Superior varies based on the individual circumstances of students and may be reduced through grants and scholarships.

How much would I pay?

Financial Aid: How much help is there to pay?

Scholarships & Grants

• 49% of 2011-12 full-time undergraduates received need-based grants or scholarships; the average award for the year was $5,270.00. Scholarships and grants are financial aid that does not need to be repaid and is sometimes referred to as gift aid.

Annual Need-Based Loans

• 63% of 2011-12 full-time undergraduates received need-based work-study and/or loans (not including parent loans); the average loan for the year was $0.00. Loans need to be repaid. Typically, repayment starts once you are no longer enrolled full-time. Please refer to page 12 of the Funding Education Beyond High School guide on the US Department of Education's Federal Student Aid website for more information about Financial Need.

Percent of 2010 Full-time Beginning Students Receiving Each Type of Financial Aid

NOTE: Students may receive aid from more than one source.

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72% of new freshmen live in campus-based housing or residence halls.
26% of all undergraduates live on campus

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The primary goal of the Campus Safety Office is to serve and protect University of Wisconsin-Superior students, employees and visitors.We conduct walking and vehicle patrols of the campus on a 24-hour basis, with all buildings being randomly patrolled on a continuous basis.

Campus Crime Statistics

The Carnegie Classification's were created "to reference the great diversity of colleges and universities in the United States, and ... enable [people] to identify groups of roughly comparable institutions." For information on the Carnegie Classifications system, please visit their website: http://classifications.carnegiefoundation.org/

Basic Type

Master's Colleges and Universities (medium programs)

Size and Setting

Small four-year, primarily nonresidential

Enrollment Profile

Very high undergraduate

Undergraduate Profile

Full-time four-year, selective, higher transfer-in

Undergraduate Instructional Program

Arts & sciences plus professions, some graduate coexistence

Graduate Instructional Program

Postbaccalaureate with arts & sciences (education dominant)

NOTE: Institutional classifications based on the Carnegie 2005 edition.

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Students who are actively involved in their own learning and development are more likely to be successful in college. Colleges and universities offer students a wide variety of opportunities both inside and outside the classroom to become engaged with new ideas, people, and experiences. Institutions measure the effectiveness of these opportunities in a variety of ways to better understand what types of activities and programs students find the most helpful.

Institutions participating in the VSA program measure student involvement on campus using one of four national surveys. Results from the one survey are reported for a common set of questions selected as part of VSA. Following are the selected results from the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). The questions have been grouped together in categories that are known to contribute to student learning and development. The results reported below are based on the responses of seniors who participated in the survey.

Group Learning Experiences

• 92% percent of seniors worked with classmates on assignments outside of class.
• 53% of seniors tutored or taught other students
• 32% of seniors spent at least 6 hours per week participating in co-curricular activities such as student organizations and intramural sports

Active Learning Experiences

• 87% of seniors spent at least 6 hours per week preparing for class
• 21% of seniors worked on a research project with a faculty member
• 44% of seniors participated in an internship, practicum, or field experience
• 60% of seniors participated in community service or volunteer work
• 20% of seniors participated in study abroad
• 98% of seniors made at least one class presentation last year

Institutional Commitment to Student Learning and Success

• 96% of seniors believe this institution provides support for student success
• 78% of seniors rated the quality of academic advising at this institution as good or excellent
• 75% of seniors reported that this institution provided help in coping with work, family and other non-academic responsibilities
• 96% of seniors reported working harder than they thought they could to meet an instructor's standards or expectations

Student Interaction with Campus Faculty and Staff

• 61% of seniors believed that the campus staff were helpful, considerate, or flexible
• 85% of seniors believed that faculty are available, helpful, or sympathetic
• 96% of seniors reported that faculty members provided prompt feedback on their academic performance
• 74% of seniors discussed readings or ideas with faculty members outside of class

Experiences with Diverse Groups of People and Ideas

• 78% of seniors reported that they often tried to understand someone else's point of view
• 85% of seniors reported their experience at this institution contributed to their understanding people of other racial and ethnic backgrounds
• 50% of seniors often had serious conversations with students of a different race or ethnicity

Student Satisfaction

• 73% of seniors would attend this institution if they started over again
• 87% of seniors rated their entire educational experience as good or excellent
• 84% of seniors reported that other students were friendly or supportive

Evaluation of Experiences

Survey Administration Process

Survey Information

Survey Administration Process

A 80% four-year success and progress rate means that 80% of students starting in Fall 2005 either graduated or are still enrolled at a higher education institution four years later.

Counts for the Fall 2005 entering class shown in the graph above.

• 336 First-Time, Full-Time Students
• 303 Full-Time Transfer Students

Success & Progress Rate Table

First-time students in Fall 2010 that returned for their second year: 68%

All colleges and universities use multiple approaches to measure student learning. Many of these are specific to particular disciplines, many are coordinated with accrediting agencies, and many are based on outcomes after students have graduated.

With the establishment of the Office of Assessment in Spring 2010 and the adoption of a campus-wide assessment plan by the Faculty Senate in December 2010, the institution began a systematic effort at assessment of student learning.  The Assessment Plan calls for assessing student learning on the following four levels: Level 1. Institution-wide assessment of liberal education learning goals – led by the HLC Assessment Academy Team; Level 2. General education assessment – led by the General Education Committee; Level 3. Academic program assessment – led by departmental assessment liaisons and the Office of Assessment; Level 4. Co-curricular program assessment by the standard set by CAS (The Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education) -- led by the Vice Chancellor of Campus Life.

Student learning goals and outcomes have been established for each of these four levels and approved by the appropriate bodies.  Assessment of these outcomes are also being planned and implemented under the appropriate leadership, coordinated by the Office of Assessment.  

At the institutional level, students are expected to meet five Liberal Education Learning Goals (LELGs).  These goals were adopted by the Faculty Senate in December 2009, revised in October 2011, and include the following: ability to think and make connections across academic disciplines; ability to express oneself in multiple forms; ability to analyze and reflect upon multiple perspectives to arrive at a perspective of one’s own; ability to think and engage as a global citizen; and ability to engage in evidence-based problem solving.   The campus is currently undertaking the assessment of these learning goals under the leadership of the HLC Assessment Academy Team.  According to the plan developed by this team, the five goals are to be assessed over three years on the rotation bases, starting in 2011-12.  All involved in this assessment will choose various measures but apply common rubrics to measure the level of student achievement.  The assessment data and analysis for one of the LELGs “ability to express oneself in multiple forms” will become available by Fall 2012. 

Students at the UW-Superior are also expected to meet the General Education learning outcomes.  Our General Education Program aims to meet the following mission: “General Education at the UW-Superior integrates students into a community of creative learners rooted in the tradition of liberal arts education.  It does so by familiarizing students with the ‘ways of knowing’ associated with the various academic disciplines and by fostering the development of a set of habits of mind and academic skills associated with reflective and critical learning” (UW-Superior Undergraduate Catalog 2010-12).  The Catalog also lists specific learning goals for the General Education Program, which are to be achieved through the General Education curriculum comprised of the core curriculum and knowledge categories.  However, assessment of student achievement in relation to these goals is still an area that needs improvement.  With this need in mind, the General Education Committee proposed a revised set of the General Education learning outcomes and submitted it for the approval of the Undergraduate Academic Affairs Council and the Faculty Senate in January 2012.   Once these revised outcomes are approved, the committee will develop an assessment plan for these outcomes and facilitate its implementation starting in 2012-13.

As for the program-level assessment, each academic major program has established a set of student learning outcomes and submitted it to the Office of Assessment.  These outcomes will be assessed under a 3-5 year rotation plan determined by each program.  The faculty and staff in each academic program are to select appropriate tools for this assessment (e.g., methods, measures, and measurements) so as to make the assessment feasible and relevant to their respective program needs.  The Office of Assessment will keep track of the progress made in this program-level assessment and post it at its website.

The UW-Superior also plans to assess student learning in co-curricular programs, including Liberal Arts High Impact Practices (LAHIPs; e.g., first-year seminar, first-year experience, writing across the curriculum, global awareness, academic service learning, and senior-year experience) and various programs offered through the Campus Life.  Student learning through the LAHIPs are assessed mainly by indirect measures (such as the First Year Seminar student survey, the Academic Service Learning surveys of student as well as community agencies, and the Senior-Year Experience survey to the faculty/staff).   Student learning through Campus Life programs is to be assessed by the standard developed by the CAS (Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education).  This assessment plan is currently under development.

Overall, student learning assessment processes at the UW-Superior are effective in engaging the faculty and staff in the continuous improvement of the quality of education.  Because the faculty/staff participate in the development and implementation of student learning assessment plans at all levels, they are more likely to own the process and results of student learning assessment.  Through assessment activities, many of them became more cognizant of the alignment of curricular offerings and student assignments with student learning outcomes and more willing to improve the curriculum based on the evidence of student learning.   These indicate the culture of assessment is growing at UW-Superior. 

Learning Assessment Examples

Colleges and universities participating in the College Portrait measure the typical improvement in students' abilities to think, reason, and write using one of three tests. This is part of a pilot project to better understand and compare what students learn between their freshman and senior years at different colleges and universities.

2009 - 11 Results from the College Assessment of Academic Proficiency (CAAP)

The Collegiate Assessment of Academic Proficiency (CAAP) measures critical thinking and written communication using two test modules -- critical thinking and a writing essay. The critical thinking and writing scores are reported separately below.

Test Administration Process

Test Information

Critical Thinking Results for First-time, Full-time Students

The increase in learning on the performance task is above what would be expected at an institution testing students of similar academic abilities.

Freshman Score: 60
Senior Score: 63
CAAP score range: 40 to 80

Average ACT scores for tested students
Freshman Score: 22
Senior Score: 21

Writing Essay Results for First-time, Full-time Students

The increase in learning on the performance task is at or near what would be expected at an institution testing students of similar academic abilities.

Freshman Score: 3
Senior Score: 3
CAAP score range: 1 to 6

Average ACT scores for tested students
Freshman Score: 20
Senior Score: 21