Enrollment drops but student diversity increases at Iowa’s public universities – Iowa Capital Dispatch

The Iowa Board of Regents reported a drop in undergraduate enrollment on the three state universities in the course of the 2022 fall semester.

The 1.3% decline is sort of half of final 12 months’s enrollment drop. The colleges noticed a 2.5% lower, which represented greater than 1,800 college students, final fall. State college enrollments have been shrinking since fall 2017. Fall 2020 noticed the biggest lower in enrollment, with a drop of three,333 college students throughout the schools.

Iowa State College’s enrollment fell by 739 college students in fall 2022 and the College of Northern Iowa’s lower was 282 college students. The College of Iowa noticed a slight enhance of 0.4%, with 105 further college students enrolled.

New pupil enrollment elevated at each ISU and the UI this 12 months. Total switch pupil enrollment additionally elevated for the primary time “in a number of years,” in line with the 2022 enrollment report. 

The UI, with 30,015 college students, has probably the most enrolled college students this fall, a title beforehand held by ISU since no less than 2013. A complete of 68,933 undergraduate college students are at present enrolled in Iowa’s public establishments. 

Graduate pupil populations noticed a lack of 469, whereas skilled pupil numbers held regular.

The variety of in-state college students additionally declined this 12 months, as out-of-state college students rose. Iowa’s public establishments misplaced greater than 1,000 in-state college students, whereas gaining lower than 500 out-of-state enrollments. 

The UI at present has probably the most in-state college students enrolled, with 17,308. ISU has 16,696 and UNI has 8,115. 

The worldwide pupil inhabitants additionally declined, persevering with a development that began in 2016. The variety of worldwide college students has dropped from 8,358 to 4,046 since 2016. This 12 months, there have been 337 fewer college students from different nations in school rooms. 

Range continues to extend

Extra girls are enrolling in Iowa’s public increased training system, which has been a constant development lately. Ladies comprised nearly all of undergraduate, graduate, {and professional} pupil enrollment in fall 2022. 

College students who determine as racial or ethnic minorities are additionally enrolling at Iowa’s public establishments in bigger numbers. In 2022, 17.4% of Iowa increased training college students recognized as an ethnic or racial minority, up 0.03% from 2021. The development has been constant since fall 2013, in line with paperwork from the Board of Regents. 

Hispanic and Latinx college students stay on the highest proportion of racial or ethnic minority college students, with 7.1% of the scholar physique. 

The annual enrollment report might be introduced on the Board of Regents assembly on Nov. 10 on the Iowa College for the Deaf in Council Bluffs, Iowa.  

The regents plan to ask the Iowa Legislature for $630.46 million in 2024 fiscal 12 months appropriations in the course of the subsequent state legislative session. The request asks for $34 million greater than the final spherical of appropriations funding to assist meet inflation.