The Daily Bulletin Archive

By Tony Astran

New enrollment data for Buffalo State points to a strong year of growth for the college. Total enrollment is at its highest level since fall 2002. The academic profile for the incoming class rose significantly, and transfer enrollment increased nearly 20 percent from last fall.

Buffalo State’s enrollment is 11,714, an increase of 480 students (4.3 percent) from last year. Total undergraduate enrollment is 9,822—an increase of 451 students (4.8 percent) from last year and the highest total since fall 1992. Full-time graduate enrollment reached its highest in the history of the Graduate School, at 630. New freshman enrollment is 1,530—the third-largest class since fall 1990. And the 82 incoming students in the All College Honors Program nearly doubled the previous year’s total.

A number of academic departments also experienced dramatic student gains, most notably Communication, Theater, Criminal Justice, Technology, Biology, and Psychology. Student Personnel Administration also grew at the graduate level.

One area of concern is a larger-than-anticipated drop in the first-time, full-time retention rate, from 77.7 percent last year to 72.2 this year. According to Mark Petrie, associate vice president for enrollment management, the economy and the January tuition increase were the prime causes. Petrie said his office followed up with students and found that most did not leave because of dissatisfaction with Buffalo State. Half are now attending community colleges to save money, while most of the others are not enrolled in college at this time. Petrie hopes Buffalo State will consider pushing for more need-based tuition aid next year.

The economy also seems to have had a slight effect on the number of students living on campus. Total enrollment in the residence halls is 2,275, down 37 students (1.6 percent) from last year and the first decrease in 10 years.

“The economy is making a huge impact on students’ ability to live on campus,” Petrie said, “and we have a sizable number of students who could move back home and commute if financially pinched. But there’s still an increased demand for housing. The numbers should go back up.”

The struggling economy has, however, attracted more students to public education—allowing Buffalo State to increase its admission selectivity. SUNY categorizes selectivity levels of students from Group 1 (best) to Group 5 (lowest). Petrie said that 84 percent of incoming Buffalo State students were at Group 3 or better, up from 76 percent the previous year. The mean high school average for freshmen is 86.6, up from 86.2, and the mean SAT composite score rose 15 points, to 1,013.

“We’re still very much committed to access, but there’s also a direct correlation between the academic profile and retention,” Petrie said. “SAT scores normally only increase a few points each year, so this jump is huge for us.”

Nevertheless, with declines in the numbers of college-age students expected throughout the next decade, the large increase in transfer students comes at an opportune time. New transfer enrollment is 1,408, an increase of 223 students (18.8 percent) from last year and the largest transfer class in 30 years.

“It’s important to keep our enrollment up, especially given the uncertainty surrounding the state budget,” Petrie said. “Tuition dollars pay the bills. A continued focus on transfer students should help with retention rates, and we may strive to bring in more transfer students than first-year students over the coming years.”

Petrie said that he is monitoring two trends based on recent statistics. First, Hispanics continue to grow in number. “They’re the future of college enrollment in this country,” he said, “but unfortunately there’s a socioeconomic gap for many, and tuition keeps going up while federal and state support keeps going down. We’ll need to make sure more of them can get through college—specifically, four-year institutions.” Second, Petrie noted that 40 percent of students attending a four-year institution nationally are not at their first-choice school—up from 30 percent just four years ago. “This is a retention issue we’ll need to continue to better understand,” he said. “We want to help our students feel good about being here.”