Current:Home > reviewsGeorgia public universities and colleges see enrollment rise by 6% -StockSource
Georgia public universities and colleges see enrollment rise by 6%
View
Date:2025-04-19 13:26:44
ATLANTA (AP) — All 26 of Georgia’s public universities and colleges added students this fall in the strongest enrollment surge in years.
Enrollment rose 6% statewide from fall 2023. That increase of nearly 20,000 students set a new record of nearly 365,000, surpassing last year’s previous high of 344,000.
During a Tuesday meeting in Atlanta, University System of Georgia officials told regents they believed the system had benefitted from the Georgia Match program that sends letters to high school seniors urging them to apply for admission. Also continuing to power the surge were the online master’s degree programs offered by Georgia Tech. The Atlanta university saw enrollment grow by another 11% and is now Georgia’s largest university, with more than 53,000 students.
The University System of Georgia again saw its growth outstrip students nationwide. The National Student Clearinghouse reported last month that student enrollment nationwide grew by 3%.
“That’s something that you all, all of our campuses ought to be really, really proud of,” Chancellor Sonny Perdue told regents.
Growth continues to be unbalanced, with the system’s largest schools generally growing faster than its smaller institutions. But the smaller schools have returned to growth after bleeding students during the pandemic.
The University of West Georgia, based in Carrollton, saw enrollment rise nearly 13%, the most of any school in the system.
Georgia Tech increased its student headcount by 11% and Augusta University by 10%. Georgia Southwestern State University in Americus and the College of Coastal Georgia in Brunswick each saw student numbers grow by nearly 9%.
Enrollment is especially important at the smaller schools because the system distributes much of the money that lawmakers appropriate based on enrollment and smaller schools typically don’t have big private donors or research contracts to cushion them. Thus, enrollment declines can lead to budget cuts.
Student numbers remain below fall 2019 levels at eight of the nine schools that the system classifies as state colleges, schools that typically offer both two-year and four-year degrees. Only Dalton State College in northwest Georgia has more students now than five years ago.
Enrollment rose in all four undergraduate years, among graduate students, and younger students dual-enrolled in high school and college courses.
The system saw a larger number of first-time freshmen, as it tried to buck demographic trends. The number of graduating high school seniors in Georgia is likely to fall for years beginning later in the decade, because of a decline in birthrates. The Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education has projected, based on birth rates and migration, that the number of Georgia high school students graduating in 2037 will be 12% smaller than in 2025.
The Georgia Match program is part of a nationwide trend called direct admission. The idea is to reach students who haven’t considered going to college. More than half the students who received a letter applied for admission to a public Georgia college.
Twenty-three University System of Georgia institutions are taking part. The University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, and Georgia College & State University aren’t participating because they require a standardized test and consider additional factors before offering admission.
In the system’s overall enrollment, the share of white students continued to decrease statewide, falling below 42% this year. The share of Hispanic and Asian students rose again, reflecting a diversifying Georgia population. The share of Black students rose slightly to 26%.
veryGood! (68623)
Related
- How to watch new prequel series 'Dexter: Original Sin': Premiere date, cast, streaming
- How Barnes & Noble turned a page, expanding for the first time in years
- Ashton Kutcher’s Rare Tribute to Wife Mila Kunis Will Color You Happy
- Why does the Powerball jackpot increase over time—and what was the largest payout in history?
- Selena Gomez engaged to Benny Blanco after 1 year together: 'Forever begins now'
- Germany moves toward restrictions on Huawei, as Europe sours on China
- Dave Grohl's Daughter Violet Joins Dad Onstage at Foo Fighters' Show at Glastonbury Festival
- Yeti recalls coolers and gear cases due to magnet ingestion hazard
- Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
- This $40 Portable Vacuum With 144,600+ Five-Star Amazon Reviews Is On Sale for Just $24
Ranking
- Trump's 'stop
- California toddler kills 1-year-old sister with handgun found in home, police say
- Biden and the EU's von der Leyen meet to ease tensions over trade, subsidy concerns
- Birmingham firefighter dies days after being shot while on duty
- North Carolina trustees approve Bill Belichick’s deal ahead of introductory news conference
- Biden and the EU's von der Leyen meet to ease tensions over trade, subsidy concerns
- Warming Trends: Cooling Off Urban Heat Islands, Surviving Climate Disasters and Tracking Where Your Social Media Comes From
- First lawsuit filed against Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern leaders amid hazing scandal
Recommendation
A South Texas lawmaker’s 15
A multiverse of 'Everything Everywhere' props are auctioned, raising $555K for charity
To Equitably Confront Climate Change, Cities Need to Include Public Health Agencies in Planning Adaptations
Bebe Rexha Is Gonna Show You How to Clap Back at Body-Shamers
Paige Bueckers vs. Hannah Hidalgo highlights women's basketball games to watch
How three letters reinvented the railroad business
Can India become the next high-tech hub?
Yeti recalls coolers and gear cases due to magnet ingestion hazard
Like
- As Trump Enters Office, a Ripe Oil and Gas Target Appears: An Alabama National Forest
- As the US Pursues Clean Energy and the Climate Goals of the Paris Agreement, Communities Dependent on the Fossil Fuel Economy Look for a Just Transition
- China is building six times more new coal plants than other countries, report finds