The University expects the official number of enrolled freshman starting school this fall term to exceed 3,100, a figure that bests last year’s total freshman enrollment by almost 100.
The official tally of new freshman will remain unknown until after the fourth week of classes, but with the current estimate, this year’s freshman class will be the
largest since the University made its
admission requirements more selective in 2002.
In 2002, the University changed its requirements for guaranteed admission by boosting the necessary grade point average to 3.25 and increasing the number of required academic units to 16. The changes significantly affected the number of enrolled freshman the following year, holding the freshman class of 2003 to 2,819 students.
Since then, however, the number of admitted freshmen has slowly but steadily increased, and according to Martha Pitts, director of admissions, the increase can be attributed to many factors.
“There was a pretty significant increase in applications this year,” Pitts said. “We also had a large graduating class last year.”
Although the freshman class has continued to grow in the last four years, the
University plans to try and maintain overall enrollment numbers in order to ensure that the students and faculty aren’t
undereducated or overworked, Pitts said.
“We’re not looking to grow institutionally, especially because of funding,” Pitts said.
Something that the University is excited about is a “modest increase in the number of students of color” in this year’s freshman class, Pitts said. Roughly 18 percent of the new freshmen are students of color, which is a 2 percent increase since last year, Pitts said.
Another reason for the increase in the number of students of color is the University’s attempt to attract top students of all backgrounds by giving out scholarships that can help make attending college more affordable, Pitts said.
Although the inflow of new freshmen is slightly larger, Pitts said that the housing situation on campus shouldn’t feel any added stress because of the completion of the Living Learning Center, the University’s newest residence hall.
According to Pitts, the University is very conscious of enrollment numbers and is confident that the increase in new freshmen will not have a negative impact on the
student body.
“The University wants to continue to give each student a good education,” Pitts said.
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