Around noon on Sept. 2, 2025, visitors to the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus likely witnessed a pretty stunning sight: a line of more than 1,500 exuberant engineering undergraduates—all wearing red “Wisconsin Engineering” t-shirts—stretching more than a half mile along a route from Union South toward the Kohl Center for the university’s fall 2025 convocation.
It was their first official day as UW-Madison engineering students and the culmination of a morning of introductions—to each other, as well as to a larger community of people eager to help support their success—at the College of Engineering’s new student welcome.
Mainly freshmen, along with a handful of transfer students, the fall 2025 class of new engineering students is among the largest in college history—bringing the total number of UW-Madison engineering undergraduates to approximately 5,350.
Welcome to new students 2025
As the new engineers flooded the outdoor plaza at Union South to check in for the welcome event, Grainger Dean of the College of Engineering Devesh Ranjan was among college leaders who enthusiastically greeted them and distributed t-shirts and knit winter hats. “You’ll need these,” he joked, as the students headed off for snacks and smaller-group activities.
Later, speaking on video, Ranjan told students about the powerful role great mentors at UW-Madison played in his success, and pledged to do the same for them. “Twenty-two years ago, I was a new student here in this college of engineering,” he said. “I had just arrived from India, full of hope and big dreams. I returned to Wisconsin this summer to become our college’s dean. I still have the same energy I brought 22 years ago, along with a deep commitment to helping you shape your future.”
It’s a future increasingly important in the nation’s global competitiveness. Through an aggressive growth initiative that includes a massive new building—the Phillip A. Levy Engineering Center—the College of Engineering is poised to make even greater contributions to the country’s leadership in innovation, as well to as the engineering workforce of the future.
Over the past decade, for example, the college has hired more than 120 new faculty with expertise in critical areas that include energy, semiconductors, sustainability, health, technology, construction and manufacturing, among others.
At the same time, the college’s enrollment also is on the rise; over the next few years, it aims to grow its number of undergraduates to 6,000, while also building on its graduate student population. That’s in response to state and national companies’ need for more engineering leaders, as well as skyrocketing student demand for an outstanding UW-Madison engineering education.
Their education, as new students learned at the welcome event, is as big and broad as they’d like it to be. With abundant opportunities to specialize, and to put their education into practice through hands-on projects in class, internships or co-operative work in companies, membership in student organizations, entrepreneurial activities, and more, students can tailor their Badger engineering education, making them even more marketable to future employers.
At the welcome, students also learned about the importance of staying focused and connected. In small groups, they spent time getting to know each other, talking about their past interests and the things they hope to try or accomplish in college. They discussed the ways in which learning in college might differ from how they studied in high school, as well as strategies for identifying and responding to challenges.
It was, in part, a prelude to the support they’ll receive in their first year through the college’s “BE Engaged” program—a series of tools, opportunities, resources and activities that foster success in students’ academics, career development, community-building, and wellness.
For students, the welcome event was as much about kicking off their new lives in college as it was about building their identity as Badger engineers. At the event’s close, all 1,500-plus students gathered again in the plaza at Union South for a class photo—one more reminder of the strong network of which they now are a part.
In his video at the welcome, Ranjan invoked the college’s storied history while challenging students to aim for a brighter future. “Today, you’re joining a community built by generations of bold thinkers—students, professors, staff and alumni who have transformed industries, advanced knowledge, and improved lives,” he said. “Here, we don’t just solve problems—we seek out opportunities. We take smart risks. We turn big ideas into solutions that matter.”
“That’s what it means to be a Badger engineer.”
Feeling pumped! 🤩 A fantastic day for 1,500+ super-talented new students to become #badgerengineers🦡!! Today marks the beginning of a journey where bold ideas meet real impact! 🌎
#uwmadengr #badgerengineering #uwengineering #uwengineers #engineeringthefuture #badgerengineer #uwengineers #engineeringstudents #engineeringstudent #onwisconsin #uwfall #classof2029 #badgerengineeringwelcome2025
Open post by uwmadengr with ID 17954125979862221
Feeling pumped! 🤩 A fantastic day for 1,500+ super-talented new students to become #badgerengineers🦡!! Today marks the beginning of a journey where bold ideas meet real impact! 🌎
#uwmadengr #badgerengineering #uwengineering #uwengineers #engineeringthefuture #badgerengineer #uwengineers #engineeringstudents #engineeringstudent #onwisconsin #uwfall #classof2029 #badgerengineeringwelcome2025
...
Introducing: the future. 💫 Welcome #uwmadengr Class of 2029! 🙌 🦡
#engineeringthefuture #badgerengineers #badgerengineering #uwengineers #uwengineering #wisconsinengineering #engineeringstudents #badgerengineeringwelcome2025 #uwfall #classof2029
Open post by uwmadengr with ID 18017103509773323
Introducing: the future. 💫 Welcome #uwmadengr Class of 2029! 🙌 🦡
#engineeringthefuture #badgerengineers #badgerengineering #uwengineers #uwengineering #wisconsinengineering #engineeringstudents #badgerengineeringwelcome2025 #uwfall #classof2029
...
🎉Welcome 1,500+ #badgerengineers! We are so excited to see you! 🎉
#uwmadengr #badgerengineering #uwengineering #badgerengineer #engineeringthefuture #uwengineers #engineeringstudent #engineeringstudents #uwfall #badgerengineeringwelcome2025
Open post by uwmadengr with ID 17889893703338824
🎉Welcome 1,500+ #badgerengineers! We are so excited to see you! 🎉
#uwmadengr #badgerengineering #uwengineering #badgerengineer #engineeringthefuture #uwengineers #engineeringstudent #engineeringstudents #uwfall #badgerengineeringwelcome2025
...
Ready to welcome you, #badgerengineers 🎈🎈🎈
#uwmadengr #uwengineers #uwengineering #badgerengineering #engineeringstudents #uwfall #badgerengineeringwelcome2025
...
💡IMAGINE this space filled with new #badgerengineers ... more 🦡🦡 than ever before. 🎉 It`s TODAY. 🎉 👏WELCOME!!!!! 🎈🎈🎈
#uwmadengr #badgerengineeringwelcome2025 #badgerengineering #uwengineering #uwengineers #engineeringstudents #engineeringstudent #engineeringthefuture #fallsemester #uwfall #uwmadison
Open post by uwmadengr with ID 18065645621192741
💡IMAGINE this space filled with new #badgerengineers ... more 🦡🦡 than ever before. 🎉 It`s TODAY. 🎉 👏WELCOME!!!!! 🎈🎈🎈
#uwmadengr #badgerengineeringwelcome2025 #badgerengineering #uwengineering #uwengineers #engineeringstudents #engineeringstudent #engineeringthefuture #fallsemester #uwfall #uwmadison
...