Wilson Emerson Schmidt, son of Emerson P. and Gertrude Wilson Schmidt, was born in Madison, Wisconsin, on March 22, 1927. He obtained a bachelor's degree at the University of Maryland in 1947, and a master's degree at the University of Pittsburgh the following year while working as a lecturer. In 1952, he earned a Ph. D. at the Univesity of Virginia.

In 1950, Schmidt married Eleanor Butt Parker. (The couple would have three sons.) That same year Schmidt joined the Economics Department at George Washington University. He taught there until 1966, serving as chair of the department during his final year. He also served as visiting professor of economic development at Johns Hopkins in 1960, and at the Johns Hopkins Bologna Center (Italy) from 1963 to 1965. A specialist in economic development, Schmidt joined the Virginia Tech faculty as head of the Economics Department in 1966. He took leave to serve as deputy assistant secretary for research in the U.S. Dept. of the Treasury in 1970, establishing the department's research program. Two years later, he resumed his role as chair of Virginia Tech's Economics Department and continued to serve in the position until 1977. In 1981, President Reagan nominated Schmidt as the U.S. director of the World Bank. Before he could accept the position, Schmidt died, July 21, 1981.