Northeastern Braces for Record Enrollment Year Again

TAHLEQUAH Following a trend that started back in 1999, Northeastern State University continues to grow with overall enrollment up again, and up at each of the University's three main locations. Current enrollment at Oklahoma's premier university exceeds 9,300, up nearly 4 percent from the previous year. The 2003 fall semester marks the University's largest enrollment since 1995.

"Northeastern's reputation for providing a high-quality, affordable education continues to grow year after year. It is to NSU's credit that students of all ages and needs are choosing the University for their education," said NSU President Dr. Larry Williams. "With three distinctly diverse campuses - traditional, commuter and evening only - Northeastern not only provides an environment perfect for many different types of students, but a place where each can enjoy success at their own pace."

Record Freshmen Class. Northeastern welcomed the largest freshman class in school history with more than 1,300 first-time students. This is the fourth time in the last five years and the third consecutive fall semester that NSU has experienced record freshman numbers.

"We are extremely pleased with Northeastern's reputation as a first-choice institution for traditional age students," said Bill Nowlin, NSU Dean of Enrollment Management/Registrar. "Though the University enjoys a healthy transfer student population, it's nice to see NSU remains a popular choice for a large number of students pursuing their undergraduate degrees."

Campuswide Increases. NSU's newest location in Broken Arrow tops individual enrollment percentages with a nearly-18-percent increase over last year. NSUBA is currently serving more than 2,483 students with approximately 300 coming from TCC enrollment on the BA campus. Northeastern's Muskogee campus also saw a sizeable increase with a 15-percent increase in its enrollment figures. In addition, more than 7,410 students are taking classes on NSU's traditional campus in Tahlequah.

Credit Hour Leap. Not only are there more students enrolled at Northeastern this semester, but those students are taking more classes, as evidenced by record-breaking credit hourproduction figures. This year, more than 111,941 hours will be logged in the fall semester, a more-than-3-percent increase over one year ago.

"Northeastern has a unique and twofold challenge ahead - to continue to meet the needs of a steadily growing student population despite budget reductions of more than 12 percent over the last 20 months," said Williams. "Though the numbers are encouraging, we continue to struggle with decisions regarding much-needed faculty, class sizes, and class availability."