Hannah Lundquist-
Throughout its history, UW–Stout has had much to brag about. For the past three school years now, Stout can add record enrollment to that list.
In the last twenty years, Stout’s enrollment has increased by 29 percent, which is nearly double the UW system rate.
The count is taken on the tenth day of each academic year after classes have begun. Stout expects that the number will rise even more when a count is taken later in the fall to account for the students who did not arrive or did not start classes until after that day.
The 2014-2015 school year saw an increase of 63 students from the previous year, with the number rising after the tenth day count.
For the 2015-2016 school year, Stout’s student enrollment had a 1.4 percent increase. It was hoped the numbers would continue to rise throughout the year and that Stout enrollment would break 9,500 for the first time in its history.
This year, enrollment has risen again, and we now sit at a preliminary head count of 9,552.
While these numbers are good for the university as a whole, there is always the question about what this means for the individual student.
Rachel Bergmann, a junior in the graphic design program says, “It is hard to get into classes that I need now due to the high demand; I am worried about how this will affect my education.”
Chancellor Meyer says, “There are some real challenges that we have with record enrollment; one of them would be ‘can I get the classes that I need, can I get the housing that I need?’ We are really stretched thin there.”
Thankfully, this is a problem that Stout is working on. “A lot of the growth that is happening is in the customized tuition offerings and customized instruction for programs,” says Chancellor Meyer.
With the budget cuts, it can be hard for prospective students to see that Stout is the right choice. On average, class size has risen by about three students per class. However, students continue to recognize the 97.3 percent employment placement rate and value the education they can receive at Stout.
The new official count for enrollment will be out in the fall after all the students have arrived and all those who leave or transfer have been accounted for.