More students poured into the 32 Minnesota State Colleges and
Universities this fall than ever before, resulting in the largest
increase in the number of students since the system began, officials
said today in releasing enrollment figures.

The state colleges and universities system now has 198,792 students
or 12,641 more students than last fall when 186,150 students were
enrolled. That’s nearly a 7 percent increase. Previously, the largest
increase in the fall headcount was 9,023 additional students in 1999.
Also, this is the fourth consecutive year that the system’s fall
enrollment has set a record high.

Enrollment increases were particularly strong at the system’s 25
community and technical colleges. Thirteen colleges had increases
greater than 10 percent.

“We know the economy was a major factor driving this enrollment
boom,” said Chancellor James H. McCormick. “This unprecedented
growth comes at a time when budgets have been cut at the state colleges
and universities so faculty and staff are working harder than ever to
serve students. We especially welcome the opportunity to serve
displaced workers seeking to retool and upgrade their knowledge and
skills.”

Enrollment was up in nearly all categories. The number of students
of color this fall grew by 18.7 percent, from 27,446 to 32,585, while
enrollment of white students was up 8.6 percent. In recent years, the
colleges and universities have expanded programs to recruit and retain
more students from groups traditionally underrepresented in higher
education - students of color, low-income students and students who are
the first in their families to attend college.

Enrollment of high school students in college courses, through the
Post-Secondary Enrollment Options program, grew by 4.8 percent. Under
Minnesota law, high school students can take courses tuition-free at the
state’s public colleges and universities.

The number of students taking online courses, which includes credit
and noncredit courses, grew by 21.7 percent to 47,794 this fall. The
system offers about 200 programs completely or predominantly online
through Minnesota Online (www.minnesotaonline.org), the largest provider
of online education in the state.

Full-year-equivalent enrollment is projected to increase by almost
5.5 percent for the current year. (Full-year-equivalent enrollment is
calculated by adding the credits taken by all students and dividing by
the number of credits considered to be a full-time course load - 30
credits per year for undergraduates and 20 credits for graduate
students.) The colleges and universities project a full-year-equivalent
enrollment of 151,805 for the current year, compared with the actual
full-year-equivalent enrollment of 143,924 for the 2008-2009 academic
year.

The numbers released today are the official enrollment count of
students taking credit-based courses on the 30th day of the fall
semester.

The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system comprises 32
state universities and community and technical colleges serving the
higher education needs of Minnesota. The system serves about 250,000
students per year in credit-based courses and an additional 140,000
students in non-credit courses.

# # #
Note: To see the report, go to:
www.mnscu.edu/media/newsreleases/2009/images/Fall_09_30thday_enrollment.pd