WSCU Reports Spring Enrollment Increase Over 2012

Western State Colorado University’s enrollment at the beginning of the Spring 2013 semester is up by 119 students over Spring 2012. Furthermore, WSCU retained a higher percentage of students between fall and spring semesters.

“This is the best retention we’ve seen in years,” says WSCU President Dr. Jay Helman. “We have been working hard to develop an effective strategy for keeping students engaged, and I believe programs like our First Year Experience are working.”

WSCU’s First Year Experience program was launched as a way to build connections between first year students and their community while giving them a broad survey of Western State Colorado University’s academic offerings. First Year Experience  is a requirement for freshmen, and includes an enhanced student orientation, participation in a interdisciplinary First Year Seminar, and living on campus in academic focused living-learning communities. The First Year Experience is designed to boost camaraderie among students through shared experiences, as well as integration into campus and the Gunnison Valley.

“I loved the First Year Experience because it helped me learn about the new community I live in, and how students fit in to the picture,” says WSCU freshman McKenzie Parrott. Parrott, from Breckenridge, says she enjoys living in campus housing in a living-learning community as well. “The small groups are great,” she says. “It helped me meet lots of other students and make connections with freshmen from all different types of backgrounds.”

Other factors that contributed to WSCU’s spring enrollment numbers include an increase in the number of high school students taking classes at Western State Colorado University. WSCU is committed to providing college access to high school students because getting involved in higher education early is proven to help students prepare for college.  

About Western State Colorado University

Western State Colorado University offers a private university education at a public school value. With average class sizes of 22 students and great professors, 90% of whom hold the highest degree in their field, WSCU is the type of university where students are not a number. Located in the small, friendly Colorado mountain town of Gunnison, the university sits in a spectacular setting, surrounded by a one of a kind natural Colorado laboratory where students learn by doing and apply what they’ve learned in the field. To learn more about Western, visit our website at admissions.western.edu.