FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Growth at the University of Arkansas remained a consistent trend, with 16,449 students enrolled for the fall 2003 semester. The 2.6 percent increase breaks the previous record of 16,035 set one year ago. The University also recorded 1,264 transfer students, the largest increase in five years.

The increased enrollment figures also represent an overall improvement of 11.6 percent, or 1,709 total students, since Chancellor John A. White began his tenure in fall 1997.

"The University of Arkansas’ continued growth gives us a clear indication that its message about creating a more diverse, student-centered campus is well received," White said. "While it is encouraging to see the steady increases in enrollment, we must remain focused and dedicated in order to meet student recruitment and retention goals outlined by the 2010 Commission."

Retention improved, with 82.7 percent of students enrolled in fall of 2002 returning to the U of A for the fall 2003 semester, an increase of one half of a percent.

"We feel it is important to involve our first-year students quickly for the purposes of retention, and the University has implemented several programs aimed at doing just that," Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Dean of Students Brian Hemphill said. "Our First Year Experience program includes events like Razorback Outreach for Community and Knowledge (R.O.C.K.) Camp and Convocation. These programs give our students a sense of the community that exists on campus and help to enhance their early experiences at the University."

The University also saw a significant increase in college assessment scores of new students entering this fall. Based on the ACT exam, entering freshmen are averaging 25.4, a 1.6 percent increase from last year’s score of 25. Regarding high school grade point averages (GPA), entering freshmen averaged GPA’s of 3.6, up 0.8 percent from last year.

"We are pleased by the academic credentials of our incoming freshmen," White said. "These students are representative of some of the best the country has to offer."

In the critical area of diversity, the University posted increases among new international students, jumping 20.5 percent from 190 to 229 students. The number of new Hispanic-American students grew 16.3 percent from 92 to 107 students. Among new African-American students, the numbers fell from 338 to 295, a loss of 12.7 percent. Also, new Asian-American students fell 1.7 percent from 121 to 119, and new American-Indian students fell from 102 to 93, a loss of 8.8 percent.

"We enjoyed a significant increase in the number of African-American students last year, but unfortunately, we did not see the same numbers this fall," Hemphill said. "Despite that, the overall enrollment of black students decreased only slightly from 1,022 to 1,005, a loss of 1.7 percent. That indicates that we are able to retain many of our students from year to year, and that’s very encouraging."

"We will continue to actively recruit minority students and believe that we will see an increase in enrollment for next year," new Director of Admissions Dawn Medley said. "We will use focused recruitment efforts to work with minority populations and anticipate growth similar to that of fall 2002, when the University experienced an 11.2 percent growth in new minority students."

Progress was also seen in graduate enrollment. Total graduate student numbers climbed from 2,520 to 2,670, an increase of 6 percent from last fall. In addition, there are 197 non-degree seeking graduate students enrolled, up 11.9 percent from last year’s 176. Of this, 1,803 students are enrolled in masters programs, 9 in the law masters, 6 in specialist programs and 852 in the doctoral program. Also, law professional enrollment is up 11.5 percent from 410 last fall, to 457 this fall.

Total undergraduate degree-seeking enrollment is 12,722, up 1.2 percent from last year. There are also 403 non-degree seeking undergraduate students, up 11.3 percent from last fall’s 362.