CMU overall enrollment at record high, but reduction in freshmen

(NOTE: This article originally appeared in the September 11, 2009 edition of Central Michigan Life.)

Central Michigan University is witnessing a record-high on-campus enrollment this fall despite a drop in freshmen.


According to new reports released by CMU’s Office of Institutional Research, freshman enrollment for the
fall 2009 semester is down 4.5 percent, at 3,691 from last fall’s 3,864. But overall on-campus enrollment is up to 20,444, said Steve Smith, director of public relations.

The university was expecting the drop in freshmen.

“This is something the university has been forecasting for a number of years,” Smith said. “The number of high school graduates in the state is dropping and is anticipated to do so until 2017.”

Despite the drop in freshmen, the OIR report on enrollment lists undergraduate enrollment, graduate enrollment and international student enrollment all at seven-year highs, the period for which OIR tracks data.

Wagner said the university still has the third-largest application rate in the state, behind the University of Michigan and Michigan State University, and the university exceeded its transfer student goal.

“(These numbers) are something that the university is very pleased with,” Smith said.

Even less freshmen?
The OIR predicts the number of students of graduating from public high schools in the state will drop to 96,990 by 2015, down from the 112,230 who graduated from public high schools in 2008.

University tuition costs and room and board are just some expenses that make a four-year university costly for families struggling to make ends meet.

“The economy is more of a concern,” said Betty Wagner, director of admissions. “I think that more students are saving money by commuting to a community college.”

Community colleges are gaining where four-year universities are losing. An in-district resident pays $99.50 per credit hour at Mid Michigan Community College, according to the MMCC Web site, while a freshman at Central Michigan University will pay $339 per credit hour for the 2009-10 academic year.

MMCC Spokesman Matt Miller said the college has seen record enrollment over the past eight years.

“(Community College) enrollment goes up as the economy goes down,” Miller said.

With the number of graduating high school seniors decreasing, CMU is trying to gain a greater market share of a decreased pool by increasing the university’s reputation in and outside of the state.

The university has recruitment centers in Chicago, Ill., Grand Rapids and two offices in metro Detroit. The university is looking to expand its presence in Indiana and Ohio, Wagner said.