Graduate and International Enrollments Set New Record

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Graduate and international student enrollment both increased at the University of Arkansas for the fall 2010 semester. There are a total of 3,771 graduate students, a 4.3 percent increase over the previous year. There are 1,164 international students, both graduate and undergraduate, representing more than 120 countries.

"This continues a remarkable 10 years of steady growth in the graduate student population," said Todd Shields, interim dean of the Graduate School and international education. "Since the fall 2000, graduate enrollment at the University of Arkansas has increased 51 percent."

The largest increases in graduate enrollment are in the College of Engineering, which had a 13.8 percent growth, and the College of Education and Health Professions, where graduate enrollment increased by 8.1 percent.

"The increases in graduate student enrollment in recent years have contributed greatly to our mission as a research institution and the land grant institution of the state," said Chancellor G. David Gearhart. "Our graduate students are crucial to our success. They work alongside our faculty in the research labs, teach undergraduate classes as part of their training, and become the scholars of tomorrow. In fact, they are the future leaders in our knowledge-based economy, paving the way for future economic growth in the state and representing the University of Arkansas around the world.

International education, both graduate and undergraduate, is now overseen by the Graduate School. The school has managed all international recruitment and admissions since 2003, and, beginning this school year, all international offices on campus are included in the Graduate School. The success of this organizational strategy can be seen in the record enrollment of international students, both graduate and undergraduate.

"Our university continues to reach out to the global community with international students choosing to attend the University of Arkansas and domestic students gaining global experiences through study abroad, and interacting with students from around the world," said Sharon Gaber, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs. "The Graduate School and international education will serve as the hub of these efforts, and interim Dean Shields and I look forward to the many ways in which this new centralization of international education will facilitate greater international collaborations for the entire campus."

In addition to recruiting international students, the graduate school also has a commitment to increase its enrollment of underrepresented students from Arkansas and the rest of the country. Those efforts have been successful, with minority enrollment now 17 percent of the graduate student body.

"The Graduate School is an important part of our institutional efforts to provide underrepresented students opportunities for success," said Charles Robinson, vice provost for diversity. They are clearly committed to making the University of Arkansas reflect the diverse and international world in which we live."

"Our graduate recruitment team, our admissions staff and our sponsored students staff all work diligently to increase the numbers, quality and diversity of our graduate student population," said Patricia Koski, associate dean of the graduate school. "In partnership with the faculty and administration of the academic colleges, we have been very successful in these efforts."

Those efforts extend to international student recruitment as well.

"Last year our recruiters made over 70 visits to colleges in America, around the world, and embassies in Washington, D.C. We take every opportunity to inform international applicants about the outstanding opportunities at the University of Arkansas," said Lynn Mosesso, director of graduate and international recruitment and admissions. "We're pleased that these efforts have paid off so well as we consistently achieve increases in our international applications. These efforts have ensured that our programs have quality international students."