Post by WeNeed3 on Sept 29, 2009 7:04:38 GMT -5
Hitting the books
Despite slumping economy, local college enrollment booming
September 29, 2009
By DAVID SHAROS For The Sun
In some ways, it doesn't seem to add up.
The rising cost of a college education continues to plague parents and students alike. Yet despite this, local colleges, including North Central College, Benedictine University and the College of DuPage, are all reporting record enrollments this fall.
BY THE NUMBERS
20: The percent that enrollment has grown over the past five years at North Central College.
90: The percentage of students at North Central College who get financial aid or some other assistance.
16,000: The record full-time enrollment this fall at College of DuPage
In Lisle, increasing enrollments appear to be nothing new. Benedictine University has enrolled a record freshman class for the fifth consecutive year with 445 freshmen this fall, compared with 427 a year ago. A decade ago, that number stood at 261.
A prime reason may be economic. Dayna Crabb, acting director of enrollment, said that last October, the board of trustees voted to freeze tuition for incoming freshmen through 2011 -- a move that has certainly played a role in the current enrollment increase.
"People are also surprised when they apply about the financial aid we offer and the kind of packages we have," Crabb said. "We begin working with potential students their sophomore and junior years, and coming to a four-year school like ours with the reputation we have for strong academics is something they've set as a goal for themselves."
Martin Sauer, dean of admission and financial aid at North Central College, believes the college's current good fortune can be attributed to hard work.
"We've had record visits of students here to the campus in the past year, and students are putting North Central high on their list of places they want to go," Sauer said. "We've also worked very hard in these times of economic uncertainty to make the school affordable. At least 90 percent of our students receive financial aid or some kind of need-based assistance, and we contribute to the state or federal money they receive."
Enrollment at North Central stood at 2,000 students in 2004, and today, it stands at 2,500, or a 20 percent bump.
At the junior college level, College of DuPage is, likewise, seeing its numbers go up. Joe Moore, assistant vice president of external affairs, reports a record enrollment of just more than 16,000 full-time students this year -- a record, he said, explainable by three things.
"The first is the local economy since, for awhile, DuPage trailed other counties in the area in terms of unemployment," Moore said. "As more people in DuPage began to lose their jobs, people here began to look to 'retool' and come back to school for more training."
The second issue, Moore said, is the tremendous reputation COD has and the fact that college officials have begun to aggressively market an institution that was already doing well.
"We never did much advertising, but in the past few months, our college officials have rolled out a campaign we call 'Opportunity of a Lifetime' which is alerting people to all of the options we offer," he said. "There is a direct connection to the campaign and the third issue which is that, nationally, junior colleges are seen as a more viable option for people looking to re-tool as well as save money. People get a high-quality education at a more affordable price."
Sauer agreed that junior colleges are getting a bump in enrollment for the reasons Moore suggested, but said his view of four-year schools like North Central represent the end game that was long in the making.
"Regardless of the economy or the price structure with a junior college, I think most kids that come here had it in their minds to go to a four-year school for a long time," he said.
www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/1795546,6_1_NA29_COLLEGE_S1-090929.article
Despite slumping economy, local college enrollment booming
September 29, 2009
By DAVID SHAROS For The Sun
In some ways, it doesn't seem to add up.
The rising cost of a college education continues to plague parents and students alike. Yet despite this, local colleges, including North Central College, Benedictine University and the College of DuPage, are all reporting record enrollments this fall.
BY THE NUMBERS
20: The percent that enrollment has grown over the past five years at North Central College.
90: The percentage of students at North Central College who get financial aid or some other assistance.
16,000: The record full-time enrollment this fall at College of DuPage
In Lisle, increasing enrollments appear to be nothing new. Benedictine University has enrolled a record freshman class for the fifth consecutive year with 445 freshmen this fall, compared with 427 a year ago. A decade ago, that number stood at 261.
A prime reason may be economic. Dayna Crabb, acting director of enrollment, said that last October, the board of trustees voted to freeze tuition for incoming freshmen through 2011 -- a move that has certainly played a role in the current enrollment increase.
"People are also surprised when they apply about the financial aid we offer and the kind of packages we have," Crabb said. "We begin working with potential students their sophomore and junior years, and coming to a four-year school like ours with the reputation we have for strong academics is something they've set as a goal for themselves."
Martin Sauer, dean of admission and financial aid at North Central College, believes the college's current good fortune can be attributed to hard work.
"We've had record visits of students here to the campus in the past year, and students are putting North Central high on their list of places they want to go," Sauer said. "We've also worked very hard in these times of economic uncertainty to make the school affordable. At least 90 percent of our students receive financial aid or some kind of need-based assistance, and we contribute to the state or federal money they receive."
Enrollment at North Central stood at 2,000 students in 2004, and today, it stands at 2,500, or a 20 percent bump.
At the junior college level, College of DuPage is, likewise, seeing its numbers go up. Joe Moore, assistant vice president of external affairs, reports a record enrollment of just more than 16,000 full-time students this year -- a record, he said, explainable by three things.
"The first is the local economy since, for awhile, DuPage trailed other counties in the area in terms of unemployment," Moore said. "As more people in DuPage began to lose their jobs, people here began to look to 'retool' and come back to school for more training."
The second issue, Moore said, is the tremendous reputation COD has and the fact that college officials have begun to aggressively market an institution that was already doing well.
"We never did much advertising, but in the past few months, our college officials have rolled out a campaign we call 'Opportunity of a Lifetime' which is alerting people to all of the options we offer," he said. "There is a direct connection to the campaign and the third issue which is that, nationally, junior colleges are seen as a more viable option for people looking to re-tool as well as save money. People get a high-quality education at a more affordable price."
Sauer agreed that junior colleges are getting a bump in enrollment for the reasons Moore suggested, but said his view of four-year schools like North Central represent the end game that was long in the making.
"Regardless of the economy or the price structure with a junior college, I think most kids that come here had it in their minds to go to a four-year school for a long time," he said.
www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/1795546,6_1_NA29_COLLEGE_S1-090929.article