Enrollment up at ENMU this semester
By: Holly Feng
Issue date: 10/7/08 Section: News
Eastern New Mexico University's student enrollment and retention is higher than it has been in previous years.
"Students want to get into a university that is growing, because … that means … it's popular. It means people are choosing to come to this school, so I think (a good enrollment) will have a positive impact on the students," said Steven Gamble, president of Eastern New Mexico University.
ENMU has an increased enrollment this fall. According to an e-mail from Gamble and the registrar's third-Friday report, ENMU grew in headcount from 4180 in fall 2007 to 4300, a 2.9 percent increase.
There are 3860 on-campus students (including 3339 undergraduates and 521 graduates) and 440 off-campus students (including 247 undergraduates and 193 graduates).
First-time freshmen (including summer) increased from 551 in fall 2007 to 567 in fall 2008, an increase of 2.9 percent. Freshmen retention remained at 59.5 percent.
Many students said they chose Eastern due to the inexpensive tuition, small campus size, friendly atmosphere and it's close to home.
According to Gamble, for students paying in-state tuition, Eastern has the third lowest tuition and fees among 77 colleges in the Southwest.
Freshman Amelia Bilbrey said one of the reasons she chose Eastern because she got a scholarship.
"Before I graduated high school, I (knew) some of the professors and everybody was nice … I'm not just a number on the student ID. They know my name and who I am," Bibrey said.
"The classroom environment is like the teachers actually get to know you compared to … a big university where you have 400 kids in a class," said Aleh Roberson, a freshman from Roswell.
The enrollment influenced Eastern's overall budget. According to the e-mail from Gamble, the University's semester total credit hour production grew from 44,513 in fall 2007 to 45,940 in fall 2008, a 3.2 percent increase.
"The more students we get, taking more semester hours -- it means we get more money from the state. So, there's not a direct relationship between more students and (more) tuition, but there is relationship between more students and more money from … the state," Gamble said.
"Students want to get into a university that is growing, because … that means … it's popular. It means people are choosing to come to this school, so I think (a good enrollment) will have a positive impact on the students," said Steven Gamble, president of Eastern New Mexico University.
ENMU has an increased enrollment this fall. According to an e-mail from Gamble and the registrar's third-Friday report, ENMU grew in headcount from 4180 in fall 2007 to 4300, a 2.9 percent increase.
There are 3860 on-campus students (including 3339 undergraduates and 521 graduates) and 440 off-campus students (including 247 undergraduates and 193 graduates).
First-time freshmen (including summer) increased from 551 in fall 2007 to 567 in fall 2008, an increase of 2.9 percent. Freshmen retention remained at 59.5 percent.
Many students said they chose Eastern due to the inexpensive tuition, small campus size, friendly atmosphere and it's close to home.
According to Gamble, for students paying in-state tuition, Eastern has the third lowest tuition and fees among 77 colleges in the Southwest.
Freshman Amelia Bilbrey said one of the reasons she chose Eastern because she got a scholarship.
"Before I graduated high school, I (knew) some of the professors and everybody was nice … I'm not just a number on the student ID. They know my name and who I am," Bibrey said.
"The classroom environment is like the teachers actually get to know you compared to … a big university where you have 400 kids in a class," said Aleh Roberson, a freshman from Roswell.
The enrollment influenced Eastern's overall budget. According to the e-mail from Gamble, the University's semester total credit hour production grew from 44,513 in fall 2007 to 45,940 in fall 2008, a 3.2 percent increase.
"The more students we get, taking more semester hours -- it means we get more money from the state. So, there's not a direct relationship between more students and (more) tuition, but there is relationship between more students and more money from … the state," Gamble said.