IU welcomes record freshman classes at IU Bloomington, IUPUI – biggest, brightest and most diverse

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana University campuses in Bloomington and Indianapolis have welcomed their largest, brightest and most diverse freshman classes ever.

On the IU Bloomington campus, there are 8,001 beginning students, who are 23.6 percent minority and have an average SAT composite of 1295, which is up nine points over last year. The IUPUI campus has 4,093 beginning students, who are 27.9 percent minority and have an average SAT composite of 1118, which represents an increase of four points.

Enrollment at all levels across the university remains robust this fall, with IU serving more than 112,000 students across the state. Those students are also taking more than 1.3 million credit hours. The tallies include students enrolled in IU programs at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne and in high schools taking dual credit through the Advance College Project.

These numbers were reported Aug. 29, the official IU census day for the fall semester.

These figures include 20,053 domestic minority degree-seeking students, which is a new record for diversity at IU. The 20,000-student milestone is a first for the university, and the percentage (24.1 percent) of degree-seeking minority students is a record, including record numbers of Hispanic/Latino and Asian-American students, and the second-highest number ever of African-American students, including those who have chosen the “two or more races” census category. Over the last 10 years, the minority student population at IU has nearly doubled.

These figures show the continuing impact of IU’s Bicentennial Strategic Plan, which prioritizes a commitment to student success: keeping tuition and fees low, providing financial assistance, helping students stay on track to graduate and enrolling more students from diverse backgrounds.

“Indiana University continues to be an outstanding, highly sought college option, especially for residents of Indiana,” IU President Michael A. McRobbie said. “Our enrollment remains strong and at record levels in many areas, and reflects the demand for an IU education that is affordable, relevant and of great distinction.

“We’re especially proud of our record number of minority students, who make up roughly a quarter of IU’s total enrollment, which is testament to a universitywide commitment to diversifying our campuses, the growing diversity of our state and the continuing globalization of higher education.”

Total official enrollments for the seven IU-administered campuses (IU Bloomington, IUPUI, IU East, IU Kokomo, IU Northwest, IU South Bend and IU Southeast) stand at 94,698, including degree-seeking and non-degree-seeking students but not including students enrolled in dual-credit high school classes. A total of 66,147, or 69.9 percent, of students are Indiana residents. When dual-credit numbers are added, this percentage is closer to 73.

Enrollment is stable at IU Bloomington, the university’s oldest and largest campus, with 43,710 students with a record 583,745 credit hours. Degree-seeking undergraduate enrollment is at 33,429, a 0.6 percent increase from last year, of which 58.9 percent are Indiana residents.

IU Bloomington has a record 8,232 degree-seeking minority students, or 22.3 percent of the enrolled domestic student body, with record numbers of Hispanic/Latino, African-American and Asian-American students and students of two or more races.

Enrollment is also stable at IUPUI with 29,791 students with a record 372,524 credit hours. More than 25,000 of these students, about 87 percent, are Indiana residents.

IUPUI has a record 7,130 degree-seeking minority students, or 26.8 percent of the enrolled domestic student body, with record numbers of Hispanic/Latino and Asian-American students and students of two or more races. Also, international students on campus are at record numbers, up 1.2 percent from last year.

Universitywide, this year’s group of beginning students arrive with strong track records of achievement. Over 20 percent of Indiana resident students had a high school rank in the top 10 percent of their class, and 64.1 percent earned academic honors diplomas.

“One of our key strategies is always a commitment to student success, and these figures show students who are coming to us ready to succeed,” said John Applegate, executive vice president for university academic affairs.

“For the second consecutive year, undergraduate credit hours topped the 1 million mark. We also continue to serve high numbers of undergraduates with full-time course loads, keeping them on the path to on-time graduation.”

IU also saw a record 5,066 students enrolled in online degrees, a 4 percent increase over last year’s record. Additionally, more than 29,000 IU students are enrolled in at least one online class, a figure that has surged in the past four years. Online courses generated 135,193 credit hours across the university, accounting for 11.3 percent of all university credit hours, up from 10.2 percent last year.

Of IU’s regional campuses, IU Kokomo grew in enrollment (up 2.3 percent) and in credit hours (up a record 3 percent), and the campus welcomed a record incoming class of 605 students, up 19.3 percent over last year.

There were small declines in enrollment at other regional campuses due to changing demographics in their respective regions and strong economic growth that has resulted in some potential students opting to go straight into the job market.

Note: Effective this fall, unless otherwise noted, IU’s enrollment counts do not include high school students taking dual-credit courses. The change will result in figures that are a better indicator of the core changes happening with IU enrollment and that most accurately reflect campus and institutional health, capacity and service.

Enrollment facts

All figures below represent total campus enrollment and total credit hours, which include degree-seeking and non-degree-seeking students, but do not include high school students taking dual-credit courses. Where appropriate, “degree-seeking” is added to reflect a subset of the total enrollment.

Indiana University

• 94,698 students, down 0.7 percent.
• 1,200,258.1 credit hours, flat from 2016.
• 69.6 percent of degree-seeking undergraduates are Indiana residents. Records for Hispanic/Latino students (6,279, up 8.1 percent), Asian-American students (4,085, 7.2 percent) and minority students (20,053, 24.1 percent of total). Second-highest number ever of African-American students (7,646), including those who have chosen the “two or more races” census category.

IU Bloomington

• 43,710 students, down 0.1 percent.
• 583,745 credit hours, a record and up 0.4 percent.
• 33,429 undergraduates (up 0.6 percent) and 10,503 graduate and doctoral students (down 2.3 percent).
• Slightly more than 50 percent of all students are Indiana residents. For undergraduates, that resident figure is 58.9 percent.
• Records for degree-seeking Hispanic/Latino students (2,426), African-American students (1,907), Asian-American students (2,316) and students of two or more races (1,522).
• Record number of minority students (8,232), 22.3 percent of U.S. resident students whose race or ethnicity is known.
• Incoming class set records for size (8,001), diversity (23.6 percent minority) and quality (average SAT Composite of 1295).

IUPUI

• 29,791 students, down 0.04 percent.
• 372,524.1 credit hours, up 0.6 percent and a record.
• Records for degree-seeking Hispanic/Latino students (1,949), Asian-American students (1,441), students of two or more races (1,113) and international students (1,985).
• Incoming class set records for size (4,093), diversity (27.9 percent minority) and quality (average SAT Composite of 1118).

IU East

• 3,490 students, down 2.6 percent.
• 36,300 credit hours, down 1.1 percent.
• Record number of graduate students (198).
• Both Hispanic/Latino (120, 3.9 percent) and African-American (153, 5 percent) students made gains in actual numbers and as a proportion of degree-seeking students.
• Taken together, the number of degree-seeking domestic minorities set a record at 403, or 13.2 percent.

IU Kokomo

• 3,029 students, up 2.3 percent.
• 37,126 credit hours, up 3 percent and a record.
• Record number of undergraduates enrolled with a full-time course load (2,213).
• Hispanic/Latino (152) and African-American (128) students and students of two or more races (88) seeking degrees are up over last year.
• Record incoming class of 605, up 19.3 percent over last year and with an average SAT composite score of 1044.

IU Northwest

• 4,055 students, down 2.9 percent.
• 46,699 credit hours, down 3.4 percent.
• Even with relative declines in enrollment by race/ethnicity, the proportion of domestic, known minorities set a record at 46.3 percent.
• Record for highest share of senior students (1,009, 28.4 percent). 

IU South Bend

• 5,385 students, down 4.4 percent.
• 64,522 credit hours, down 3.1 percent.
• Records for Hispanic/Latino students (568) and students of two or more races (205). Taken together, the known domestic proportion for minorities also set a record (25.9 percent).
• The incoming beginner class (982) is up 7.6 percent and the largest since 2011, with record proportions of Hispanic/Latino (14.4 percent), African-American (9.3 percent) and overall minority (31.7 percent) students.

IU Southeast

• 5,238 students, down 4 percent.
• 59,343 credit hours, down 2.6 percent.
• While the incoming beginner class was slightly smaller than last year (927, -0.9 percent), the overall proportion of known domestic minorities set a record at 20.9 percent. Hispanic/Latino (51, 5.5 percent) and African-American (83, 9 percent) students were also records for beginners in number and proportion.