UW System officials released data revealing an overall increase of enrolled students for the fall semester at all of the 26 campuses, including UW-Madison.
According to a statement, the number of enrolled students across the system increased by 1,663 from last year, and increased 12 percent from 1998. The release also said the number of Wisconsin resident students enrolled throughout the system has not shown any significant change since 1998.
According to the data, UW-Madison's enrollment reached 37,260 in 2008, a 6-percent overall increase since 1998, a record for the UW System.
UW-Madison experienced the lowest increase throughout the system. UW-Platteville experienced the largest increase at 46 percent.
UW-System President Kevin Reilly said it is important to see increases across all the campuses, especially at two-year universities.
""These campuses are essential to the economic and cultural well-being of their regions around the state, and this growth will be increasingly important to the economic vitality of the entire state,"" he said in a statement.
According to Heather LaRoi, a representative from the UW System Communications and External Relations Office, the system's Growth Agenda contributed to the increase in enrollment. The agenda is the system's plan to increase the amount of degree holders in Wisconsin and improve communities throughout the state.
""There has been a consistent effort on the part of UW System to increase the enrollment to get more students involved with higher education,"" she said.
Reilly said along with the increased enrollment, the number of UW System employees decreased by 1 percent since 1998.
""This shows that we are making efficient use of our available resources and providing better value to the taxpayers of Wisconsin,"" he said.
