Enrollment numbers

[78crusader]

The fall 2017 enrollment figures are out and they look about as good as the Patriots defense last night.

Total enrollment is around 4,050.  Last year it was around 4,440.  In 2015 it peaked at around 4,540. 

Freshman class is around 780.  Last year it was around 850.

The law school has 31 first year students.  The year before it was around 110.  Simply stated, the law school cannot survive if next year's class is that small.  The NY Times hit piece last year had to be a huge factor in this dramatic decline. 

Paul

[usc4valpo]

Is this a national trend for private colleges? The law school enrollment has really tanked, and this is a national trend.

[vu84v2]

Though I do not have the numbers, my understanding is that the College of Engineering enrollment has increased from the 2016-2017 academic year. Part of this could be due to adding biomedical as a new field.

[vu72]

Remember folks that the law school faculty has had significant cuts as well.  I doubt they are staffed for a new class of 100 or more.  The reality was that we were accepting people with very low test scores and more likely than not they also were not passing the bar at an acceptable pace.  As a result the reputation had tanked and we were censured by the Bar Association.  The test scores of this smaller group are much better.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/post-tribune/news/ct-ptb-valparaiso-law-censure-st-1119-20161117-story.html

Overall the numbers are alarming to me.  Not sure what happened but will ask some questions when I am at Homecoming.

[usc4valpo]

Enrollment dropped almost 8 or 9 percent from a year ago! This is obviously not good news.  I will be interested to hear what caused this drop.

[bbtds]

Enrollment dropped almost 8 or 9 percent from a year ago! This is obviously not good news.  I will be interested to hear what caused this drop.

A large portion of Valpo's enrollment increase was based on International students. Since our dear US president has decided to "influence" (I hope that is a proper word for this situation) the amount of internationals coming into America it makes sense that his involvement has greatly effected Valpo's enrollment immediately. This is a guess on my part but it seems to be one of the answers for the reduction in enrollment. 

[Vale O. Paradise]

Looks like the lower Law numbers are a direct results of Valpo Law raising standards in response to their 2016 censure: http://www.theindianalawyer.com/articles/44565-valparaiso-law-incoming-class-significantly-smaller-but-posts-higher-lsats-and-gpas

Also, looks like both Law and Grad School numbers have nearly been halved since 2013/14. Whereas Law has hit a nadir, the grad school has receded to pre-Heckler numbers after a 5-year bump (not clear if that drop was strategic/expected/intentional, like the Law School's drop, or not). Undergrad remains at a near all-time high. In addition, the professional schools (everything that's not Arts and Sciences) continue to grow: http://www.valpo.edu/institutional-effectiveness/files/2016/06/FALL01-enrollment-by-college-Fall-2017.pdf

[crusader05]

The law schools is definitely part strategy. They want to get their Bar passage rate up and they had lots of faculty take buy-outs.

From what I under the Graduate schools is a function of many things. Lower international enrollment due to some countries cutting back and our national atmosphere. Valpo is still a relatively new graduate schools and benefited from some high graduate numbers (as people seeking an education increase in a down economy). My guess is that we are generally in a more competitive environment and the school is going to need to make changes to increase numbers that maybe came misleadingly easy for too long.

Undergraduate continues to be solid with improvements in retention so I hope that a renewed focus in the graduate school will lead to increased numbers over the next few years.

[vu84v2]

A drop in enrollment of over 200 for the College of Arts and Sciences really stands out.

[valpotx]

Makes perfect sense with the current administration.  Since he is discouraging employers from hiring employees at a Junior level that require an H-1B visa, there is no incentive to come to the US for school.  Essentially, the US would be saying that you can come spend money in our schools, but we won't hire you until you get more years of experience.  International students will instead go to other European institutions, China, or Russia.

[crusadermoe]

Where are the statistics saying that Arts and Science are down by 200?   I missed those.

I wonder what is the international share of that college?  When I attended, the international students were most numerous in the engineering college.

[vu84v2]

Graduate school enrollment for the College of Arts and Sciences dropped in one year from 636 to 426. That is a major drop.

[covufan]

Graduate school enrollment for the College of Arts and Sciences dropped in one year from 636 to 426. That is a major drop.

Ouch!  Those are Missouri type reductions.

[wh]

International students:

Butler 64 of 4797 = 1%
Valpo 722 of 4524 = 16%

The Wise and Foolish Builders
24 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

[vu72]

International students:

Butler 64 of 4797 = 1%
Valpo 722 of 4524 = 16%

The Wise and Foolish Builders
24 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

My esteemed friend, we will have to disagree on this one. Butler is an example of protecting the lily white kids from the evils of this world.  Their student body is 82% white and 60% female at that.  Nearly half their kids are from Indiana.  That is not the real world.  It may be the Valparaiso, Indiana world but not Chicago or any other major city.  I used to live in Minneapolis, hardly known for its diversity. Yet when I walked into a grocery store the reality was that I felt like I had just walked into the United Nations.  Dallas?  Holy smokes, white people in many very nice areas are almost in the minority.  It is the world we live in.

Now, Valpo could "protect" their students from those who are "different" or they could do as Mike Avery has done by producing and promoting the "One Valpo" theme.  The diversity at Valpo is hardly leading the pack (still 71% white) but some exposure to different cultures will serve the students well when they actually enter the "real world".  Valpo, unlike Butler, draws students from virtually all states and many foreign countries as you've noted.  Heck, just the athletes at Valpo hail from 31 states and 10 foreign countries.

[crusadermoe]

Unfortunately, 78Cruader called it on law school closure.   Will the other trends be turned around?  Or will layoffs move into the general university?


The fall 2017 enrollment figures are out and they look about as good as the Patriots defense last night ----(Sept. 8, 2017 post date from 78Cruader).

Total enrollment is around 4,050.  Last year it was around 4,440.  In 2015 it peaked at around 4,540. 

Freshman class is around 780.  Last year it was around 850.

The law school has 31 first year students.  The year before it was around 110.  Simply stated, the law school cannot survive if next year's class is that small.  The NY Times hit piece last year had to be a huge factor in this dramatic decline. 

[vu84v2]

Valparaiso needs to look at external trends and how they relate to demand. Strengthen and expand in the areas where there is projected to be higher demand and make hard decisions about trimming and eliminating lower demand programs. Great moves to add business analytics (business school), bioengineering, and physician's assistant programs. All of these relate to high demand career areas (and they pay well). The law school had problems and the national demand is down versus the number of law schools - probably best to make the hard decision to scale it back or eliminate it. There are probably some hard decisions that need to be made regarding Liberal Arts programs, as suggested by the dramatic decline in graduate enrollment in Arts and Sciences.

[crusadermoe]

Good points.  Trends in demand should be the first and foremost thoughts.

The likely cuts in Arts and Science you predict will be particularly likely due the increasing similrity of Valpo liberal arts majors to the dozens and hundreds of schools where you can get those degrees.  78Crusder and others have commented articulately about our growing lack of distinction and identify. 

During the SE La game webcast I saw an attractive ad for Valpo citing its "passion." 

Passion is a means not an end.   Passion for what?

[VU2014]

If I were the University I would probably double down on Business & STEM programs and maybe reassess which liberal arts programs are trending up and down.

In Valparaiso's Master Plan which is 3-4 maybe 5 years old now they laid out a vision stating "It anticipates the student population growing to 6,000 in less than a decade – a 50 percent increase."

"Valparaiso University's strategic plan,
Our Common Pursuit, is visionary and
ambitious. We have imagined that student
enrollment will increase from approximately
4,000 students today to 6,000 students in
less than a decade. Faculty and staff levels
will rise to support a larger student body.
Consequently campus facilities must expand
and improve to support this growth. The
evolution of the University's facilities must
continue and accelerate."

We've headed in the wrong direction in terms of enrollment.

https://www.valpo.edu/masterplan/assets/docs/VU%20MP%20Exec%20Summary_final.pdf

[valpotx]

In regards to the Fall enrollment stats, I received something in the mail today that mentions our entering class is the largest in 28 years.  Are they referencing last year?

[ValpoFan]

The UG entering class is the largest. The low numbers are in the Graduate and law school.

[crusadermoe]

I cast my vote for December basketball team record.  An optimistic 5-2 that says we lose only the road games vs Purdue and Northwestern .


Now, here are two goals stated in print by VU leadership.   Pick the year when each will be reached. Which will be met first?

A)    $250 million dollar goal of "Forever Valpo" campaign.  (its recent pace projects to end in May 2023).

B)     6,000 student enrollment.  The VU masterplan brochure of 2013-ish says,"we imagine growth from 4,000 students to 6,000 students within a decade."

[crusader05]

interesting article in the NYT

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/02/us/international-enrollment-drop.html?_r=0

The decline in available first years is noted and I know that Valpos has been hit by the declining pop. in the idwest as well as decreased international applications

[valpotx]

International students won't want to study in the US, if the Trump administration gets its way, and closes the OPT program.  This will effect Valpo dramatically, as that has been one of our main growth strategies.

[crusader05]

I agree, our higher eduction is one of this countries best and biggest exports.