LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — When taking a closer look at enrollment numbers for universities in Arkansas, it shows that enrollment has surprisingly gone up for some of the state’s higher education options.
UA Little Rock officials took a closer look at its enrollment numbers recently and were happily surprised— they found that after more than a decade of decline, the university seems to be turning things around.
It’s a trend that has taken years to change.
"It's been kind of a steady decline over the last 13 years," said Asst. Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Management Jonathan Coleman.
The last fall semester that the university saw an increase in "student full-time equivalents" was back in 2010.
“We went from 13,000 to below 8,000 students,” Coleman explained. “It's been going the wrong way for so long.”
However, he added that things are finally looking up after they saw an increase in full-time enrollment.
UA Little Rock’s data showed a 1.2% increase in the number of full-time students this fall.
"I can't say that we didn't hope for more, of course, we wanted more, but to know that all of your hard work is finally starting to pay off, and you can see it in the data that we know is accurate, it feels really good,” Coleman described.
Last year was the turning point in their decade-plus decline when UA Little Rock saw first-time freshman enrollment grow 29%. Coleman said that's when they knew they needed to build on that momentum.
Coleman chalked up UA Little Rock’s growth to capitalizing on affordability.
“We’ve put ourselves in a position where we're one of the most affordable four-year schools in the state,” he explained.
The university’s half-off scholarship plays a big role in its affordable nature.
“It’s 50% of tuition and fees, that's where we really saw the benefit in our enrollment,” Coleman said. “That's $10,000 off their tuition and fees for their first two years.”
He added that this is crucial, as students are looking at the dollar amount now more than ever
“Affordability is now the number one factor when students are choosing their school,” Coleman said.
The main reason students have chosen a higher education option was once their choice of study, but affordability now takes the first slot. It’s a recent change Coleman credited to the pandemic.
UA Little Rock's enrollment success has been mirrored at other universities across the Natural State too.
Arkansas State University saw a 6% jump in enrollment since 2017, while Ouachita Baptist recently reported they achieved a 57-year enrollment high and Southern Arkansas University also saw record enrollment.
As UA Little Rock settles with its own new enrollment high, Coleman said they're already looking forward.
"We know our transfer population is always going to be our bread and butter and we have some really great things in the works for our transfer population,” Coleman said. “I know that affordability is still going to be at the top of our list."