Colorado State Again Posts Record Enrollment

Colorado State University has once again posted record enrollment – crossing 25,000 students for the first time, due in large part to continued success in student retention efforts.

In enrollment figures released today, Colorado State announced a total enrollment of 25,042, or about 1.2 percent up from last fall. In the past several years, the university had seen a growth rate of 3.5 percent per year. In this recruitment cycle, however, the university sought to limit that growth to under two percent by enforcing more selective math requirements for transfer students as well as other measures designed to better match the number of students with the resources available to teach them.

The number of continuing students, a measure of the university’s retention efforts helped the institution post the record enrollment figure. This success in retention has also translated into an improved graduation rate at Colorado State, which now has a four-year graduation rate of more than 33 percent, one of the highest in state.

Overall, the total number of undergraduate students was very similar to last year – up only .5 percent – to 20,628 students. This total was bolstered by an increase of  445 additional continuing undergraduate students this year over last year.

The number of new freshmen was also very similar to last year’s total – down .7 percent this year for a total of 3,802 students. These entering students continue a trend of being better-qualified, as measure by standardized test scores, high school grade point average and high school rank. The average index, a summary of these three measures, is this year at 109.7 – an all-time high for an entering class.

"We’re encouraged by the quality of the students who are choosing Colorado State, and that our efforts to keep students enrolled and on track to graduation are paying dividends," said Larry Penley, president of Colorado State. "Despite the economic difficulties we have faced, we are committed to providing the highest quality education possible, in part by effectively managing the number of students and the resources we have to serve them."

The number of graduate students was up 5.7 percent to 3,837, due also in large part to continuing students who made up 2,722 of the total graduate school enrollment this year, up from 2,535 in continuing students last year.

Minority student enrollment also posted gains, again driven by continuing students. This year, Colorado State’s minority student enrollment was up 1.5 percent and was up 2.4 percent among undergraduate students – or about 12 percent of the undergraduate population.

Despite state and national trends showing declines in international student enrollment at many institutions, Colorado State posted gains in this area. Overall, the number of international students was up by 30 students this year over last year, good for a 3.3 percent increase. New international student enrollment was virtually the same as last year at 950 students total while total undergraduate international student enrollment was up by 19 students to 246 students and international transfer students were up by 10 students to 27 students.