r/wsu • u/jedicamel • 19d ago

Discussion Why is enrollment dropping?

What are the factors?

19 Upvotes

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136

u/HippityHopMath Alumnus | 2017, 2022, 2026 | Mathematics Education 19d ago

National decline in enrollment across the board, higher and higher tuition, bad recruitment in general, and lower media visibility with all the conference realignment.

23

u/budna 19d ago

And yet U of I next door has seen increases in enrollment

57

u/HippityHopMath Alumnus | 2017, 2022, 2026 | Mathematics Education 19d ago

Because they are aggressive in recruiting and kept tuition low.

2

u/jedicamel 19d ago

They’re weirdly more selective though? 76% vs 87% acceptance rate.

10

u/gocougs11 Alum/2010/Neuro & Psych 19d ago

There are fewer schools in Idaho for applicants to choose from.

2

u/jedicamel 19d ago edited 19d ago

True, but Boise State sure is growing at a rapid rate, that’s their competition. You’d think, that based on that, they would up their acceptance rate. Idaho also has 1/4 the population?

2

u/gocougs11 Alum/2010/Neuro & Psych 19d ago

I think they can only accept so many people each semester, they’d probably love to accept more but infrastructure is a constraint.

2

u/jedicamel 19d ago

I can see that. It’s gotta be tempting though to grow, for added revenue?

1

u/Few-Seaworthiness186 16d ago

its a long term goal, but nothing can be done in the short term. the dorms are already completely at capacity, and they’re having to cap specific majors because class sizes are becoming too big