MSU’s total enrollment has jumped by 167 students and freshman enrollment has increased by 12 percent this year.
The State College Board recorded Mississippi State’s current enrollment as 16,101-up from 15,934 in 2004. Freshman enrollment rose by 213 students, putting this entering class in the lead for enrollment since 2000.
Vice president for student affairs Bill Kibler attributed this increase to a variety of changes made at MSU. “We reorganized and re-engineered recruitment, admissions and scholarships,” Kibler said.
Under the management of Lisa Harris, associate vice president for student affairs, MSU combined three separate departments to streamline the system of recruitment and enrollment, he said.
The university also refined the recruitment process. “We enhanced records so we could keep in contact with each student in the recruitment process,” Kibler said.
The university tried to make potential students feel accepted and welcome and designed printed new brochures, called viewbooks, which were designed to attract the eye of potential students. “We want to have a consistent look, image and message,” Kibler said.
The addition of Ruby Hall and the revamping of the scholarship program may have also drawn more freshmen, Kibler said. Ruby Hall, boasting hotel-style rooms with in-suite bathrooms, became a big attraction for freshmen who expected cramped residence halls.
Also, since no new scholarship money came to MSU, the scholarship program was tweaked. “We had to spread the money further. We needed to get maximum benefit out of the money we had,” Kibler said. As a result, money was shifted and stretched to offer as much money for scholarships to as many students as possible.
An enrollment increase of this magnitude can mean several things for MSU, vice president for finance and administration Ray Hayes said. “Increased tuition and fees for 100 new additional students is approximately $300,000.”
This financial gain, however, is not a large one when the costs are offset. “Additional students mean additional class sections, and thus additional faculty to teach the sections, classrooms, advising, and then all the support activities involved,” he said.
The increase in freshman enrollment has had an effect on student activities, SA president John David Cole said. “The most immediate impact will be the increase in participation in student organizations by the larger freshman class.”
There was a larger turn out for Senate, as well as for Greek organizations, he said.
Another trend reported by the State College Board is a consistent decrease in the number of international students at MSU. Since 2001, percentages of international students have experienced a steady decline, the organization reported.
This may be due to the increasingly difficult standards that must be met by international students to enter the country, Kibler said. “Our decrease matched almost exactly to the national decline.”
Despite decreases in international as well as graduate students, Kibler is positive about future enrollment at MSU. The changes in the recruitment process and enrollment services were still in the works this fall, he said. Now that all the changes are in place, Kibler said he expects an even larger enrollment next fall.