LSUA is proud to announce record enrollment at the university.
This fall, LSUA is reporting a total of 3,104 students, making it the largest enrollment in the history of the university.
The previous largest enrollment was 3,093 students in 2002.
“We are excited to see LSUA breaking enrollment records,” said LSU President F. King Alexander. “Last year, we saw enrollment increase by more than 20 percent from the previous year, and seeing enrollment continue to grow shows that the university is serving and working to meet the needs of central Louisiana. This is a testament to the hard work of our students, faculty and staff at LSUA, and we look forward to continued growth in the future.”
The 3,104 traditional and dual enrolled students make up a 14.88% increase over the 2,702 students enrolled in fall 2014 and a 39.01% increase over fall 2013.
“I am very proud of the effort that the faculty and staff have put in to increase our enrollment numbers,” said LSUA Chancellor Dan Howard. “We are also very excited about the quality of the students who have chosen to attend LSUA and earn their degree from a fine institution. Unprecedented success in enrollment growth and quality of students at LSUA is attributable to the individual and collective actions of the entire campus community and the extraordinary support of the LSUA Foundation.”
Additionally, LSUA is welcoming a total of 506 first time freshmen. The number of freshmen enrolled results in a 10.96% increase over the previous fall. This year’s freshmen class comes to LSUA from 136 high schools and is the most in LSUA history.
LSUA is also experiencing a 10.23% increase in the number of students continuing at the university with 1,530 enrolled this semester. Last fall, LSUA launched a series of classes entitled, “LSUA – The Experience” with the goal of engaging students in on-campus activities, teaching them how to be successful in college and keeping them enrolled at the university.
Additionally, the university is experiencing an impressive 39% increase in the number of transfer students this fall with a total of 335 transfers. This year marks the highest number of transfer students in school history.
High school students also continue to take advantage of dual enrollment opportunities at LSUA. The university has 553 high school students taking at least one college course this fall. This number represents a 31.04% increase over the number of dual enrolled students last fall.
When the dual enrolled students are removed from the headcount, LSUA has a population of 2,551 traditional students compared to 2,285 traditional students in Fall 2014. This number represents at 11.64% increase in those students, proving that LSUA continues to be a popular choice for high school graduates.
With a larger enrollment, student credit hours continue to climb. A total of 33,004 credit hours are being taken this fall. This is a 13.66% increase over the credit hours taken in the previous fall and a 39.01% increase over fall 2013. Credit hours are a more direct way to indicate that the university continues to move in a positive direction as they are tied to tuition and fees paid as opposed to headcount enrollment. As a result, tuition and fee revenue is up 17.78% from last year and 51.56% from fall 2013.
“LSUA has great momentum. In spite of the challenging budget environment of the past few years, our faculty and staff, led by Chancellor Dan Howard, are busy building a renewed, vibrant LSUA for our community. This record enrollment is a testament to those efforts and the need for LSUA in central Louisiana,” said LSU Board of Supervisor member Blake Chatelain.
Additionally, The Oaks Residence Hall continues to experience 100% capacity. This fall marks the third fall semester in a row where The Oaks have been completely full. Currently, there are 304 occupied beds in The Oaks. As a result of seeing several years in a row of 100% occupancy, preliminary discussions are underway about the possibility of new housing being planned in the near future.
LSUA has implemented a number of programs and activities to attract more students to the university. These activities include starting both a rodeo and rugby program. There are currently 42 full-time students involved in rodeo and an additional 22 full-time students participating in rugby. These are students who would have otherwise not attended the university without these programs.
Additionally, the university Honors Program has its largest number of participants at 31 students. This number represents a 10.71% increase over the previous fall’s enrollment in the Honors Program.
The university is also seeing its highest enrollment of international students. Currently, there are 80 international students from 26 foreign countries at LSUA. These students have come from as far away as Brazil, France, England and Spain. Additionally, 30 states are represented at LSUA. This is the highest number of out-of-state residents in the school’s history.
“We continue to work hard in order to make LSUA a university of choice and to retain these students for the full four years of their academic career,” said Howard. “LSUA has students from all over the country and world which will only serve to benefit all students in a globally connected and highly competitive marketplace.”
Overall, LSUA is seeing its largest number and percentage of transfer students, returning students and re-entry students. Additionally, LSUA will record it highest high school GPA.
LSUA officially records enrollment at the end of the 14th class day.
