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IU Kokomo students top 28,000 credit hours
August 23, 2004 | |||||
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KOKOMO, Ind.—IU Kokomo students are taking more credit hours in fall 2004, enrolling in an increasing number of new bachelor’s degree programs. When classes started Monday, August 23, IU Kokomo students were enrolled in more than 28,000 credit hours of instruction. Students enrolled for 27,860 credit hours at the Kokomo campus in fall 2003. “Credit hours are a key index of enrollment success, particularly because the budget and future state support are tied to tuition revenue,” said Vice Chancellor for Student Services Jack Tharp. A large contingent, more than 56 percent of undergraduates, are taking classes full time, adding to the credit hour volume. This marks the fifth consecutive year that IU Kokomo has had more full-time than part-time students enrolled in degree programs. Credit hours are driven by the course selections within specific majors, Tharp said. Nursing and radiography—academic disciplines with high employment prospects—again are experiencing top enrollments on campus. The School of Arts and Sciences continues to grow also with a 6 percent increase in its majors. Tharp said the campus was “very close” to having around 700 first-time students, the same number of new students enrolled in fall 2003. “We had projected a 4 percent decrease in freshmen in fall 2004 because of eliminating Guided Study,” he said. Guided Study was a special program for students who needed pre-college fundamental skills building in reading, writing and math before tackling specific majors. The program was discontinued this fall when IU Kokomo raised its admissions standards. “About 6 percent of fall semester applicants did not meet the new academic standards,” Tharp said, adding that they were referred to the community college program at Ivy Tech State College. “It usually takes more than one enrollment cycle to catch up from a planned decrease in students,” Tharp said. “The campus is very pleased to be able to make up that difference much faster than we had anticipated. “We have nearly the same number of graduates just out of high school as we had in fall 2003. Last year, nearly one-half of the new students came directly from high school, a significant increase that I didn’t think we could equal again,” Tharp said. “But, preliminary data shows 352 new students who are Class of 2004 high school graduates, as compared to 355 last year. These traditional-age students tend to go full time, and account for a large portion of the total credit hours.” Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Stuart Green said the campus was pleased with the fall enrollment. “We know that several other public institutions across the state are experiencing declines this year, and there are other variables influencing college attendance,” Green said. Official enrollment figures for all eight IU campuses should be released by mid-September.
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