Despite overall decline, freshmen numbers up according to State of the University address Wednesday
Enrollment is once again down at the University of Idaho, but university officials aren’t entirely ready to tell the public the extent of the decrease.
During his annual State of the University address Wednesday, UI President Chuck Staben said the numbers indicating how much of a hit total enrollment has taken in the 2016-17 academic year are still unavailable, but he was able to say the number of first-year freshmen at the UI increased by 4.5 percent, while transfer student numbers are up 4.4 percent.
Staben said the overall decrease is due to larger graduating classes and smaller incoming classes during the past several years, but, he added, the quest for increasing enrollment is still making progress.
“I believe we are turning a corner with incoming students,” he said.
“Transfer students are typically well prepared to succeed at a four-year university, and we want to do everything possible to hold the door open for them.”
Staben said the increases in freshmen and transfer students are linked to strategic enrollment marketing efforts, VandalLink programs for transfer students and the implementation of the Direct Admission program.