October 10, 2002
State System universities report record enrollment for Fall 2002
Contact: Kevin Hensil, khensil@passhe.edu
Arecord number of students are attending the 14 Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education universities this fall, with the total enrollment exceeding 100,000 for the first time in the System’s nearly 20-year history.
Enrollment is up for the sixth year in a row across the System. With 101,546 students enrolled – more than 90 percent of them Pennsylvania residents – the State System continues as the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth.
It is extremely satisfying to see the growth occurring on all of our campuses,” said Chancellor Judy G. Hample. “This growth reflects the confidence that students and their families have in our universities.”
An additional 2,935 students are attending the state-owned universities this semester over Fall 2001, the largest one-year increase since 1989 and the fourth largest ever. The enrollment total breaks the previous record of 99,850 students who took classes at State System universities in fall 1991.
Enrollment is up this fall at all 14 universities. West Chester University of Pennsylvania experienced the largest increase, adding 340 students, or nearly 2.8 percent, while Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania had the largest percentage increase, adding 322 students, or nearly 7.6 percent.
Nine of the 14 universities saw increases of more than 200 students. The largest increases are as follows: West Chester, 340; Slippery Rock, 333; Lock Haven, 322; Edinboro, 280; East Stroudsburg, 274; Clarion, 270; Kutztown, 256; Shippensburg, 219; and Indiana, 214.
Minority student enrollment increased by more than 7 percent this fall, to 9,076 or 8.9 percent of the System total.
Nearly 60 percent of the student population is female and about 83 percent is enrolled full time. The vast majority – 87.5 percent – are undergraduates.
The top five fields of study in which students are enrolled are education, business management, social sciences, health professions and psychology.
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education universities combine to offer more than 250 degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. More than 360,000 System alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.
The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. The System also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Kittanning, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg and the University Center for Southwest Pennsylvania in Pittsburgh. The regional centers are part of the Educational Resources Group, which is responsible for coordinating statewide programming.