UW Named Among 'New Ivies' Employers Prefer
- A new 'New Ivies' list named the Wisconsin university among schools gaining traction with recruiters and employers. - The third-year list highlights 10 public and 10 private institutions; UW appears on the public institutions gaining recruiter interest. - Inclusion could boost the university's hiring pipeline, prestige, and local employer partnerships, per the announcement (patch.com).
The University of Wisconsin–Madison has landed on Forbes’ 2026 “New Ivies” list, placing it among 10 public universities that employers say they increasingly favor. (forbes.com) Forbes published the third annual list on April 8, 2026, splitting its picks into 10 public and 10 private schools. The magazine said it used a survey of more than 100 C-suite and hiring executives who rated colleges and described how artificial intelligence is changing entry-level hiring. (forbes.com) The 2026 list comes as employers report a colder market for new graduates. Forbes cited Federal Reserve Bank of New York data showing 5.6% unemployment for recent college graduates in December, compared with 4.2% for all workers. (forbes.com) Forbes said nearly 25% of the executives it surveyed expect artificial intelligence to reduce their need for entry-level college hires, while 60% said the technology will change their staffing needs. The ranking framed its 20 schools as campuses employers believe are adapting faster to that shift. (forbes.com) At Wisconsin, the employer case is backed by the university’s own outcomes data. UW–Madison said it had verified post-graduation plans for 6,400 of 9,124 bachelor’s degree recipients from summer 2024 through spring 2025, and 93% of graduates heading into work, military service, or volunteer programs had accepted a position within six months. (data.wisc.edu) The same UW–Madison survey said 91% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the university prepared them for the next step in their career path. Graduates reported jobs with 2,354 unique employers, and 40% of employed respondents stayed in Wisconsin. (data.wisc.edu) UW–Madison’s top employers for the 2024-25 graduating class included UW–Madison itself, Epic, UW Health, the State of Wisconsin, Techtronic Industries, Amazon, Madison Metropolitan School District, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Deloitte, and Ernst & Young. Those names span healthcare, software, government, manufacturing, consulting, and education. (data.wisc.edu) The university is large enough that recruiter attention can ripple widely across the state. UW–Madison reported total fall 2025 enrollment of 51,822 students, including 37,198 undergraduates, and more than 502,000 living alumni. (wisc.edu) Patch’s local report on the Forbes list said UW–Madison was the Wisconsin school included this year. The article said the designation could strengthen the university’s hiring pipeline and employer partnerships in Madison and beyond. (patch.com) The label does not change admissions standards or degree requirements on its own. It does give UW–Madison a fresh recruiting credential at a moment when employers are re-sorting which campuses they trust to produce graduates ready for an artificial-intelligence-shaped job market. (forbes.com)
