A record 15,908 students are attending UND this fall, marking the University\u2019s second consecutive all-time enrollment high and seventh straight year of growth.<\/p>\n
Behind that number are gains in undergraduate enrollment, strong retention and several of the largest freshman classes in UND history.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a closer look at what is driving UND\u2019s record enrollment.<\/p>\n
Much of the growth came at the undergraduate level, where enrollment increased by 566 students, or 7.45%, over last year.<\/p>\n
UND also now has its first-, third- and fourth-largest freshman classes in University history enrolled.<\/p>\n
For Janelle Kilgore<\/a><\/strong>, vice provost for Strategic Enrollment Management, those numbers suggest that students are finding at UND both the education and the opportunities they\u2019re looking for.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it really shows that UND is aligning with students\u2019 educational goals and their future career goals,\u201d Kilgore said.<\/p>\n Kilgore said new academic offerings, industry partnerships and greater collaboration across the University are giving students more opportunities to see themselves at UND.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re looking at us for very specific reasons, and at the end of the day, folks go to college so they can get a job,\u201d she said. \u201cI think from that standpoint, they\u2019re seeing the value in our education and the connections that we have with industry partners to help them get where they want to go.\u201d<\/p>\n That growth has continued even as UND capped freshman enrollment in commercial aviation, one of the University\u2019s most recognizable and in-demand programs, Kilgore noted.<\/p>\n She also pointed to greater collaboration across academics, Student Affairs<\/a><\/strong> and other areas of the University as another factor in the University\u2019s momentum.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a lot more collaboration within academics, Student Affairs and all the different units right now, and everybody\u2019s driving toward the goal of student success,\u201d she said. \u201cStudents are seeing all those new opportunities and that continued elevation of where UND stands in the industry market.\u201d<\/p>\n The overall enrollment record includes milestones among several groups of UND students.<\/p>\n UND welcomed 384 new freshmen to the Honors Program<\/strong><\/a> this fall, the largest incoming Honors class in University history.<\/p>\n \u201cHaving record enrollment within our Honors Program is significant,\u201d Kilgore said. \u201cIt just shows that students want to learn a little bit differently. They want to have more discussion-based conversations, more hands-on experiences and things like that.\u201d<\/p>\n This year\u2019s freshman class also includes 726 Presidential Scholars. And across the University, UND enrolled a record 2,015 military-affiliated students, the largest number in University history. Another 27 students are participating as North Dakota Para-to-Teacher<\/a><\/strong> students.<\/p>\n Growth depends not only on attracting new students but also on keeping the students who are already here. UND\u2019s first-to-second-year retention rate stands at 82.04% this fall, meaning more than four out of every five students returned for their second year.<\/p>\n Kilgore said recruitment and retention are closely linked.<\/p>\n \u201cOur greatest retention tool is our recruitment,\u201d she said. \u201cWe want to make sure that we recruit students that we know will be successful at UND.\u201d<\/p>\n And once they\u2019ve arrived, their experiences both in and out of the classroom help keep them at the University, she said.<\/p>\n \u201cStudents are having great experiences in their academic classes. They\u2019re having great experiences within student life and across all these different facets of the University.\u201d<\/p>\n For Kilgore, that experience extends beyond simply keeping students enrolled.<\/p>\n \u201cUND is a place where they can come, learn and grow,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019re going to make mistakes, and then we\u2019re here to help guide them through that next step of the process. It\u2019s just all part of the in- and out-of-classroom education at the University.\u201d<\/p>\nRecords within records<\/h2>\n
Getting students here \u2014 and keeping them here<\/h2>\n