These Colleges Have the Least Diverse Student Bodies

University of Wisconsin-River Falls is a four-year public university. About 89% of American undergraduate students enrolled in the school identify as white alone, and the odds that two students chosen at random would be of a different race, ethnicity, or U.S. citizenship status are only 23.4%, well below the national figure of 69.6%.

While the on-campus educational experience at UWRF may not be especially diverse, some enrolled students still have the opportunity to be immersed in different cultures. Each year, over 350 students at the school choose to study abroad, enrolling in programs in countries all over the word, including China, Greece, Italy, Mexico, Poland, South Africa, and Spain.

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire is one of five schools in the University of Wisconsin system to rank on this list. Wisconsin’s population is much whiter than the nation as a whole — 81.5% versus 61.1%.

The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire appears to be taking steps to becoming a more attractive place for students from diverse backgrounds. In 2017, the school established a vice chancellor to implement its plan of equity, diversity, and inclusion, which aims at creating an open campus free of racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia.

Central Methodist University-College of Graduate and Extended Studies, which is affiliated with the United Methodist church, is a private school. Though it is based in Fayette, Missouri, the school also offers classes online as well as at several sites across the state.

About 88% of CMU CGES students who are U.S. citizens identify as white. Due largely to its considerable white student body, the likelihood that two students chosen at random would be of a different racial, ethnic, or U.S. citizenship status is just 23.3%.

There is a just a 22.4% chance that two randomly chosen students would have a different racial orethnic background, or a different U.S. citizenship status, at Michigan Technological University. About nine out of every 10 American undergraduate students on campus identify as white, a far larger than typical share.

Though the school itself, which started out as a mining school in 1885, does not have an especially diverse student body, it does celebrate diversity. Every September, the school hosts a Parade of Nations event — the oldest and largest multicultural event in the region — to celebrate the 50 countries represented by those living in the broader community.

Like the other University of Wisconsin schools on this list, UW Platteville has a predominantly white student body — with about 90% of undergraduates who are American citizens identifying as white. Partially as a result, there is a just a 22.2% probability that two randomly chosen students would have a different racial or ethnic background.

Wisconsin’s population is far whiter than the nation as a whole — 81.5% versus 61.1% — and as a state school, UW Platteville offers steep discounts to students from the state. Annual tuition and fees for in-state students is just under $8,000. Meanwhile, American students from most other states pay nearly $16,000, and international students pay over $17,000.