Baylor's Fall Enrollment Tops 13,900 Students
Baylor University has enrolled more than 13,900 students in fall 2003 semester classes, including a larger freshman class than last year, according to official enrollment statistics compiled by the Office of the Registrar.
This year's total university enrollment stands at 13,937, a decrease of 222 students from last fall's enrollment of 14,159. Baylor's freshman class includes 2,678 students, an increase of 58 students from last fall. Returning students, which number 8,582 this year, were down 303, which officials said was due to a combination of several factors.
"The difference in the returning students can be attributed to last year's smaller freshman class and the larger than normal graduating classes in 2003," said Dr. Tom Bohannon, assistant vice president and director of the office of information management and testing (IMTS). "We also found that our retention rate among last year's freshman class increased to 84 percent, which is the second largest freshman retention rate in the past six years. These students are also the first who entered Baylor under the new flat-rate tuition plan."
Overall Baylor has enrolled 11,712 undergraduates; 1,291 graduate students; 440 in the School of Law; and a record 379 students in George W. Truett Theological Seminary. At the U.S. Army Academy of Health Sciences in San Antonio, where Baylor has graduate programs in healthcare administration and physical therapy, 112 students are enrolled. In addition, three students are enrolled in the doctor of science in physical therapy (DScPT) program at West Point, another degree program operated jointly by Baylor and the U.S. Army.
Baylor's official enrollment statistics are usually released on the 12th class day. This year, the numbers were delayed three days as the university converted to the new Banner Student Information System.
"This decision was made by IMTS, in consultation with several other offices, to try and make the data compatible with census data from past years," Bohannon said. "From a research and reporting standpoint, it is essential that we have comparable data and after examining the enrollment data last week, it was determined that Sept. 12, 2003, would be our census date."