UIS sets record for spring semester enrollment

Enrollment at the University of Illinois Springfield has set a record for a spring semester with 4,862 students enrolled, an increase of 327 over last spring. Spring 2010 enrollment tops a record set in spring 2007 when 4,613 students were enrolled.

The 7.2 percent increase is primarily due to a larger number of continuing students, according to both UIS Chancellor Richard Ringeisen and Dr. Tim Barnett, vice chancellor for student affairs.

“We are making significant strides in retaining students. UIS is a unique combination of a state liberal arts university with a public affairs mission,” said Barnett.

Student enrollment at UIS in fall 2009 was the largest ever in the institution’s 39-year history, with 4,961 students. Chancellor Ringeisen pointed to recent positive additions on campus, such as the Center for First Year Students, the Center for Teaching and Learning, the Diversity Center and more undergraduate advisors, as reasons for record enrollment in both the fall and spring.

“The larger-than-expected increase in spring enrollment is a sign that UIS is attracting and retaining students at a record pace,” Ringeisen noted. “It shows that new students are sensing the excitement and that our continuing students want to stay with us more than ever. We are extremely proud of our students, faculty and staff.”

Additionally, the number of students majoring in degree programs at UIS that are fully online is at an all-time high for a spring semester as well, according to Ray Schroeder, director of UIS’ Center for Online Learning, Research and Service. The total number of students with online majors is 1,290, which is an increase of 9.7 percent over last spring.

UIS offers 16 online degree programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels. More than one-fourth of UIS students are online degree program students, and more than half of all students at UIS are taking at least one online class.

“It is exciting to know that we continue to grow through this difficult recession, and that UIS is able to offer students online opportunities that give them flexibility to seek new careers and employment opportunities while completing degrees and certificates online,” Schroeder said.