CWU 2004 Enrollment Shows Continued Growth

November 1, 2004

Contact: Robert Lowery (509-963-1487/fax 509-963-2301/e-mail: loweryr@cwu.edu)

ELLENSBURG, Wash. - Enrollment figures show Central Washington University has the largest freshman class in university history now taking fall quarter classes in Ellensburg, according to Mike Reilly, associate vice president for enrollment services. A total of 1,388 new freshmen are currently listed on the university roster.

"A record number of 4,224 freshmen applied for admission for fall quarter," Reilly says. "That's an increase of 7.9 percent from last year and an overall increase of 68 percent since 1998. With the kind of growth we're experiencing, that also meant we were not able to offer fall admission to 719 freshman applicants, which was also a record number."

A record total of 9,616 students are now studying at CWU, a two-percent increase over last fall and a 19.5-percent jump from fall 2000.

That figure includes 1,495 students studying at university centers in Yakima, Wenatchee, Moses Lake, Lynnwood, SeaTac and Steilacoom, an increase of 3.3 percent over last year and 25 percent from the number enrolled for fall quarter 2000. The six CWU centers serve the needs of place-bound and time-bound students with upper division and graduate course work leading to baccalaureate and master's degrees.

On the Ellensburg campus, much of the enrollment growth can be traced to returning students. A total of 78.9 percent of fall 2003 freshmen returned to CWU this fall as sophomores, up from 76 percent in 2002-03 and 72.2 percent in 2000-01.

"We're also clearly seeing an increase in high-achieving students," Reilly says. "About a third of our freshman class earned a 3.5 grade point average or above in high school. This shows that high-quality students are choosing Central."

Reilly further notes, the CWU student head count grew by 151 students despite enrolling 21 fewer new students this fall, adding, "We project an annual average FTE (full-time equivalent) student body of between 8,800 and 8,916 during the next fiscal year."

The annual average CWU FTE enrollment during the 2003-04 academic year was 8,649.