Missouri State and Drury universities reported increased preliminary enrollment figures, while Ozarks Technical Community College went down slightly.
MSU set an opening day enrollment record of 21,107 students this week, a 3.8 percent increase compared with the first day of the fall 2015 semester, according to a news release.
The total includes 3,143 first-time students and 1,746 new transfer students, which combined create a record headcount of 4,889 new undergraduate students.
“We’ve had significant increases in the number of first-time students during the last three years,” MSU President Clif Smart said in the release.
At Drury, 503 new students joined the campus this week, up 39 percent compared with fall 2015. Total preliminary headcount is up 3 percent, said spokesman Mike Brothers.
The college’s first-time domestic student count rose 42 percent, international enrollment grew by 55 percent and the transfer student population increased 38 percent, according to a release.
“I am extremely proud of the work that has been done by our faculty and staff to bring in one of the largest classes in Drury’s history,” said President Tim Cloyd, who’s starting his first academic year with the school, in the release. “There is truly a demand for a Drury education and for the kinds of engaged learning experiences and mentorship that are an integral part of the Drury experience.”
OTC’s preliminary fall headcount came to 13,150, a 2 percent decrease compared with the same time last year, and credit hours are about flat, indicating fewer students are taking more classes. The college also anticipates its enrollment will grow by September to match its 13,614 student count recorded in its fall 2015 census, according to spokesman Mark Miller.
OTC’s first-time student count is up 2 percent and online student enrollment is up 1 percent. Readmissions are down 31 percent, and school officials speculate those students found jobs instead of returning to study.
Official counts will be released for MSU on Sept. 19, for Drury on Sept. 9 and for OTC on Sept. 6.
First-week totals for Evangel and Southwest Baptist universities were not available by deadline.
