ASU breaks several enrollment records

• Overall enrollment hits 72,250
• New undergraduate student enrollment climbs to more than 16,000
• Freshman class academically stronger than ever
• Out-of-state enrollment at new high
• ASU Honors College enrolls largest freshman class in history; earning national recognition

Preliminary enrollment figures, issued on the 21st day of the Fall 2011 semester, indicate that ASU has reached a record 72,250 undergraduate and graduate students. This tops last year's 70,440 fall enrollment at 21st day by 1,800 students and represents an increase of more than 4,200 students over fall 2009.

ASU’s new undergraduate student enrollment – nearly 9,300 first-time freshman and 6,800 transfer students – topped 16,000 students for the first time in university history.

The all-time transfer record is due, in part, to the strong partnerships ASU has with the community college systems throughout Arizona, and increases from students from other states and countries.

Out-of-state and international undergraduate students at ASU also hit record levels – nearly 14,700 total, with 3,300 new freshman and 2,000 new transfer students – as students from all 50 states and 127 countries were attracted to ASU’s programs.

Thirty-five percent of the freshman class has been attracted to ASU from another state or country, up 2 percent from last year.

The academic preparation of the 2011 freshman class is at an all time high, with a mean high school grade point average of 3.41, ACT composite of 23.9 and SAT composite (for math and critical reading) of 1107.

Thirty-seven percent of the freshman class comes from diverse ethnic backgrounds, up from 26 percent six years ago.

Barrett, The Honors College at ASU, has welcomed its largest freshman class in its history – some 1,000 students, a 15 percent increase from 2010.

The national reputation of ASU’s Honors College continues to grow, with recent accolades in August in prominent media such as the Los Angeles Times, the Atlantic and Reader’s Digest. One article cited Barrett as a reason to “skip the expensive colleges” and another named Barrett as an “excellent dedicated liberal arts college within (an) affordable public system.” An article on the explosion of student debt suggested that parents look at flagship university honors colleges such as Barrett, which it ranked “among schools with national names.”

13,850 graduate students are part of the ASU academic community for this fall semester – level with the last two years of enrollment. The Fulton Schools of Engineering, New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, the College of Nursing and Health Innovation and the School of Nutrition and Health Promotion – experienced enrollment increases, a sign of growing interest in graduate programs in the sciences and engineering.