Enrollments up at U of I, LC

UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO

The freshman class entering the University of Idaho this fall is the second largest in the recorded history of the university with 1,869 new students enrolled. It is slightly below last year's largest class of 1,951.

Retention (first-to-second year) is also up 1.4%. U of I saw an increase last year in first-generation freshmen and retention of those full-time, first-time freshmen increased 1.4% over the prior year.

Overall student enrollment for Fall 2023 is 11,849 students, up from 2022 enrollment of 11,507 students.

"Students and their families continue to seek the value of a U of I education," said U of I President Scott Green, in a news release. "This, combined with the incredible experience of our residential campus, attracts top-notch students who develop into the high-quality employees our industries deserve."

Enrollment

Undergraduate enrollment is 7,363, up 3.4% over enrollment of 7,120 in Fall 2022. Total enrollment, excluding non-degree students and dual credit high school students enrolled in college courses, is up 2.6% to 9,796 students. Other highlights include:

Idaho resident student enrollment increased by 4.3%.

International student enrollment is up 5.6%.

Dual credit enrollment increased by 15.2%.

Graduate Enrollment

Graduate student enrollment is 1,929, down 1.4% this fall from 1,956 students in Fall 2022. The graduate enrollment has seen a return to normalcy from the COVID-19 spikes observed in prior years.

Western Undergraduate Exchange

The WUE program provides a tuition discount to students outside Idaho and includes all 16 Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) states and regions. Total WUE students in Fall 2023 increased 4.3% to 1,776, up from 1,703 in 2022. Overall non-resident undergraduate enrollment (including WUE students) is up 3.5% or 73 students over Fall 2022.

“Students from outside of Idaho continue to recognize the high academic quality and great value that the University of Idaho offers,” said Dean Kahler, vice provost for strategic enrollment management, in the release. “Thanks to our generous donors and scholarship programs, the University of Idaho is a great choice for pursuing a college degree.”

Underrepresented Students

Overall undergraduate enrollment is up 40% for American Indian or Alaska Native students, up 16.5% for Black or African American students, and up 2.6% for Hispanic/Latino students. Asian student numbers are down slightly and students who identify with two or more races are up 4.8%.

Law

The College of Law is up 7.1% with 424 students enrolled compared to 396 last year.

Note: Consistent with the Idaho State Board of Education’s guidelines, the University of Idaho records fall term enrollment numbers on Oct. 15 of each year and reports those numbers to the State of Idaho and federal officials. Data reflected in this release are as reported to the Idaho State Board of Education.

LEWIS-CLARK STATE COLLEGE

Lewis-Clark State College announced it has experienced a second straight year of modest growth, according to the college’s official Oct. 15 census day totals.

Overall, LC State’s enrollment inched up 0.2% to 3,789 students, a 2.1% increase from 2021. Last fall, LC State saw enrollment increase 2% while public four-year peers around the nation experienced a 6% drop.

“Current demographic, regional, and economic factors are resulting in smaller enrollments for colleges similar to us,” LC State President Cynthia Pemberton said in a news release, “but Lewis-Clark State College continues to attract a strong core of students who are looking for a quality degree at an affordable price where they are a name and not a number. We’re a small college where students thrive — and that’s a big reason why they continue to come.”

For the second straight year, LC State’s student retention increased. It’s now at 77%, up from 74% two years ago among degree-seeking students. The number of certificates and associate degrees awarded is also on the rise.

Evidenced, in part, by another year of overflowing residential housing (over 50 students started the semester in hotel accommodations), LC State’s student demographic is increasingly made up of full-time traditional-aged students.

Other enrollment highlights include a 6% increase in Native American students (232), a 1% increase in dual credit, and a 25% increase in veterans (106). LC State was designated as a “Military Friendly School” in 2020.

Early numbers are also showing an increase in the college’s many health-related programs — including nursing, radiographic science and nursing management — as LC State continues to serve as the health education hub of North Idaho.

While the competitive labor market is decreasing enrollment in some of the college’s career and technical education programs, LC State continues to serve more than 3,700 Workforce Training students with over 4,500 courses annually. Additionally, the college’s GED program has rebounded from a pandemic low of 55 students in 2020 to 93 students in 2022.