Steady undergraduate enrollment at UI this fall

Undergraduate enrollment at the University of Iowa is holding steady after last fall’s record high, with 21,973 students compared to 21,999 in 2012.

The 2013 first-year class totals 4,460, compared to 4,470 in 2012. Among first-year students, 47.85 percent (or 2,134) are Iowa residents, 41.59 percent (1,855) residents of other U.S. states, and 10.56 percent (471) international students.

The 2013 first-year class is slightly more diverse than 2012’s, with 17.13 percent identifying as African American, American Indian, native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, Asian, Latino, or two or more races.

UI leaders aim to keep undergraduate enrollment stable while work continues on essential campus buildings, most notably a new residence hall slated for completion in 2015.

Retention and graduation rates also impact enrollment, and recent trends suggest that the university’s emphasis on undergraduate student success is paying off.

The first-to-second-year retention rate is expected to remain at approximately 86 percent once final figures are in. At the same time, more students are completing their degrees in four years.

In 2012-13, the university granted approximately 200 more undergraduate degrees compared with the previous year, despite that fact that the 2009 entering class was smaller than the 2008 cohort.

“We’ve focused on helping more students stay enrolled, and helping them complete their degrees in four years,” says Beth Ingram, associate provost for undergraduate education. “Taken together, these priorities have a balancing effect on undergraduate enrollment.”

Total UI enrollment this fall is 31,065, compared to 31,498 in 2012. Graduate students total 5,152 (versus 5,457 in 2012), and professional students 3,939 (versus 4,042).

Total UI enrollment first topped 30,000 in 2007, then surpassed 31,000 in 2011. Last year’s total university and total undergraduate enrollments both represented all-time highs.