Dickinson State University increased its enrollment for the 11th consecutive year, but it found its students in less traditional areas.
The student population increased 2.2 percent overall, rising from 2,516 to 2,572. International students, on the other hand, enjoyed a 66 percent rise. This year, the international program has 260 students, up from 157.
"The international student enrollment is significant and reflects Dickinson State University's commitment to its global awareness initiative," DSU President Dr. Lee Vickers said in a press release. "The growth shown in this program points to Dickinson State's excellent reputation in light of the stiff competition among colleges and universities nationwide to attract international students."
The university also saw a significant increase in its non-traditional students who are attending DSU through its extended campus program. The extended campus increased almost 100 students, representing a 20 percent increase. The total extended campus enrollment is 582, up from 486 last fall.
Bismarck State College contributed 292 of those students, gaining 74 students this year. The accounting and education programs have the highest enrollment, but that doesn't mean the university isn't going to expand its selection of degrees. There are currently 13 bachelor's degree programs available to area residents.
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"Certainly, we're continuing to work with the potential students in Bismarck and are more than willing to try to offer any program they may need," Vickers said. "The next logical program that we're looking at is to take the biology major to Bismarck."
Continuing in the vein of the recent partnership with the Three Affiliated Tribes, Vickers said the university plans to look at opportunities to collaborate with other entities. Overall, Vickers said he was pleased with the results of this year's enrollment figures.
"It gives anyone a picture of the trends of students coming in," Vickers said. "Then, we're pleased with the trends depicted by graduation rates from the standpoint of 98.7 percent of our students are either employed or seeking additional education."
That number is up almost 1 percent from last year. The number of students seeking additional education is up 2 percent and 59 percent of out-of-state students are now employed in the state.
Looking to improve
DSU lost 19 in-state students. The number dropped from 1,735 last fall to 1,716 this year. In-state students still reflect 66.7 percent of the student population.
Although DSU has been actively recruiting students from other states within the region, out-of-state enrollment has dropped slightly since last year. Excluding international students, enrollment dropped to 596 this year from 624 last year.
"I think that the decrease, which is small but never the less important, is due primarily to the fact that the states around us, i.e. Montana, Wyoming and South Dakota, are suffering from depopulation just like North Dakota is," Vickers said.
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Despite the drop of 28 students, Vickers said DSU would continue to recruit in areas it has traditionally recruited in, as well as search for new markets.
Another area the university is looking to improve, without a hint of a problem, is the Interactive Video Network system used by the entire university system. Vickers said the system is often at maximum capacity after 5 p.m., but DSU is looking to expand the use of it during daytime hours. He would like to use the IVN system for courses at BSC, as well as at DSU.
The continued increase in students hasn't hurt the number of dorm spaces available. Vickers said despite the increase in students, the university has a 95 percent occupancy rate. He added before the university would look at investing additional funds, the university could change its policy.
"We, at the present time, require all freshmen and sophomores to live on campus if they're from outside the immediate area," Vickers said. "We could change the policy...and that would give us tremendous amount of flexibility. Again, I would certainly like to have that challenge."
