On first day of the fall semester 1,602 students were enrolled at University of Wisconsin Colleges Online, a dramatic increase of 19 percent over the previous fall.

“Online education continues to be the fastest-growing part of higher education because it meets the needs of non-traditional students, particularly those who have jobs or families and cannot attend classes on a university campus,” said Ray Cross, chancellor of UW Colleges and UW-Extension.

Online students are not traditional college students. The typical student at UW Colleges Online is a woman in her 20’s or 30’s. For the past several years, 71 percent of UW Colleges Online students have been women and 71 percent have been 22 or older. Current year data on age and sex is not yet available.

Enrollment at the 13 UW Colleges campuses will be tabulated on the 10th day of classes, which falls on September 19. Administrators expect modest enrollment gains.

UW Colleges Online is part of UW Colleges, the UW System’s network of 13 freshman/sophomore campuses and UW Colleges Online that offer an Associate of Arts and Sciences degree and prepare students of all ages and backgrounds for baccalaureate and professional programs.

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