The University of Nebraska-Lincoln's official census date was Monday, Aug. 28, 2023. Data from the official census is now available and allows us to examine and gain insight into our enrollment trends.
Overall, college enrollment grew 3.3%, from 1010 in fall 2022 to 1043 in fall 2023. During the same period, overall university enrollment declined by .9%, from 24,301 in fall 2022 to 24,087 in fall 2023.
|
College |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
% Change |
|
Intercampus |
9 |
13 |
44.4% |
|
College of Architecture |
581 |
628 |
8.1% |
|
UNO Programs |
81 |
86 |
6.2% |
|
College of Engineering |
3830 |
4020 |
5.0% |
|
College of Law |
442 |
462 |
4.5% |
|
College of Journalism & Mass Comm |
1010 |
1043 |
3.3% |
|
College of Fine and Performing Arts |
927 |
931 |
0.4% |
|
College of Business |
4272 |
4266 |
-0.1% |
|
College of Agri Sci and Natl Resources |
2875 |
2850 |
-0.9% |
|
Graduate Studies |
384 |
379 |
-1.3% |
|
UNO - Public Affairs & Comm Service |
384 |
379 |
-1.3% |
|
College of Arts and Sciences |
4399 |
4218 |
-4.1% |
|
Explore Center Undergraduate |
1630 |
1559 |
-4.4% |
|
College of Education and Human Sciences |
3369 |
3178 |
-5.7% |
|
Visitors |
83 |
60 |
-27.7% |
|
Other University Programs |
25 |
15 |
-40.0% |
|
Grand Total |
24301 |
24087 |
-0.9% |
Undergraduate enrollment grew by 3.6%, from 945 to 979, while graduate enrollment declined by 1.5%, from 65 to 64. This minimal decline is surprising given our historically large graduating class for graduate students in Spring 2023 when 27 students left the program.
Class Level
The college gained ground at all class levels except for seniors and returning graduate students.
|
Career Name |
Class Level Desc |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
% Change |
|
Undergraduate |
First-time Freshmen |
171 |
181 |
5.8% |
|
Undergraduate |
Other Freshmen |
33 |
37 |
12.1% |
|
Undergraduate |
Sophomore |
192 |
207 |
7.8% |
|
Undergraduate |
Junior |
262 |
289 |
10.3% |
|
Undergraduate |
Senior |
287 |
263 |
-8.4% |
|
Undergraduate |
2nd Degree (Senior) |
|
2 |
|
|
Graduate |
First-time Graduate |
16 |
26 |
62.5% |
|
Graduate |
Other Graduate |
49 |
41 |
-16.3% |
|
Total |
|
1010 |
1046 |
3.6% |
It is clear from these figures that both efforts to recruit and retain both undergrad and graduate students have been successful.
Undergraduate Enrollment
Total undergraduate student enrollment grew by 3.6% from 945 to 979.
Residency
Non-resident student enrollment declined by 3.7%, while resident student enrollment increased by 7.4%. The proportion of our undergraduate student body, that are non-residents fell from 34.1% to 31.7%. This proportion remains above the broader UNL undergraduate student population, which is 24.2% non-resident.
Major
Two college majors saw enrollment increases, while two saw declines. These figures are headcount enrollment and only include students who have the major listed as their primary major. It does not include students with other majors and secondary or tertiary majors.
|
Major |
Count |
Count |
% Change |
|
Advertising & Public Relations |
391 |
416 |
6.40% |
|
Broadcasting |
128 |
115 |
-10.20% |
|
Journalism |
137 |
125 |
-8.80% |
|
Sports Media and Communication |
289 |
323 |
11.80% |
|
Total |
945 |
979 |
3.60% |
Incoming Freshmen
The college experienced a 5.8% increase in incoming freshmen, growing from 171 to 181. This
|
College Name |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
% Change |
|
College of Architecture |
113 |
157 |
38.90% |
|
College of Arts and Sciences |
604 |
661 |
9.40% |
|
College of Agri Sci and Natl Resources |
474 |
503 |
6.10% |
|
College of Journalism & Mass Comm |
171 |
181 |
5.80% |
|
College of Engineering |
913 |
909 |
-0.40% |
|
College of Business |
823 |
818 |
-0.60% |
|
Explore Center Undergraduate |
946 |
923 |
-2.40% |
|
College of Education and Human Sciences |
421 |
395 |
-6.20% |
|
College of Fine and Performing Arts |
175 |
151 |
-13.70% |
|
Visitors |
|
1 |
|
Two majors saw growth in incoming freshmen. Advertising and public relations remained flat, while journalism declined by one student.
|
Incoming Freshmen |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
% Change |
|
Advertising & Public Relations |
45 |
45 |
0.00% |
|
Broadcasting |
22 |
26 |
18.20% |
|
Journalism |
30 |
29 |
-3.30% |
|
Sports Media and Communication |
74 |
81 |
9.50% |
|
Total |
171 |
181 |
5.80% |
Transfer Students
Transfer students remained flat. Advertising and public relations and broadcasting saw declines in transfer students, while journalism and sports media and communications grew.
|
Major |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
% Change |
|
Advertising & Public Relations |
6 |
4 |
-33.30% |
|
Broadcasting |
6 |
2 |
-66.70% |
|
Journalism |
3 |
5 |
66.70% |
|
Sports Media and Communication |
15 |
19 |
26.70% |
|
Grand Total |
30 |
30 |
0.00% |
Race and Ethnicity
The college saw increases in enrollment from students across all racial and ethnic groups, except Asian students, which remained flat. The largest increase was in Hispanic students, which grew from 71 to 94 and now represent almost 10% of our student body.
|
Race/Ethnicity |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
|
American Indian or Alaska Native |
|
2 |
|
Asian |
18 |
18 |
|
Black or African American |
36 |
39 |
|
Hispanic |
71 |
94 |
|
Two or more races |
40 |
47 |
|
U.S. Nonresident |
27 |
18 |
|
Unknown race and ethnicity |
9 |
6 |
|
White |
744 |
755 |
|
Grand Total |
945 |
979 |
The proportion of students from underrepresented groups grew between fall 2022 and fall 2023.
|
Race/Ethnicity |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
|
American Indian or Alaska Native |
0.0% |
0.2% |
|
Asian |
1.9% |
1.8% |
|
Black or African American |
3.8% |
4.0% |
|
Hispanic |
7.5% |
9.6% |
|
Two or more races |
4.2% |
4.8% |
|
U.S. Nonresident |
2.9% |
1.8% |
|
Unknown race and ethnicity |
1.0% |
0.6% |
|
White |
78.7% |
77.1% |
|
Grand Total |
100.0% |
100.0% |
Gender
The college has long had a majority female student population and that trend grew this year. In fall 2022, 56.8% of students identified as female, which grew to 57.8% in fall 2023.
|
Gender |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
|
Female |
537 |
566 |
|
Male |
408 |
413 |
|
Grand Total |
945 |
979 |
|
Gender |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
|
Female |
56.8% |
57.8% |
|
Male |
43.2% |
42.2% |
|
Grand Total |
945 |
979 |
Nationality
In the fall of 2022, 3.6% (34) of the college’s undergraduate students were international students from 17 countries. In the fall of 2023, that proportion fell to 2.4% of the student body, with students enrolling from 16 foreign countries.
State
In fall 2023, students hailed from 34 different states. The top states for enrollment were Nebraska (660), Illinois (52), Minnesota (42), Kansas (33) and Iowa (26).
|
State |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
Change |
|
Arizona |
10 |
10 |
0 |
|
Arkansas |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
Armed Forces Pacific |
1 |
|
-1 |
|
California |
8 |
8 |
0 |
|
Colorado |
20 |
21 |
1 |
|
Connecticut |
1 |
|
-1 |
|
Florida |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
Georgia |
6 |
7 |
1 |
|
Idaho |
|
1 |
1 |
|
Illinois |
56 |
52 |
-4 |
|
Indiana |
3 |
3 |
0 |
|
International |
34 |
24 |
-10 |
|
Iowa |
19 |
26 |
7 |
|
Kansas |
38 |
33 |
-5 |
|
Kentucky |
1 |
2 |
1 |
|
Louisiana |
2 |
|
-2 |
|
Maryland |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
Massachusetts |
1 |
|
-1 |
|
Michigan |
3 |
3 |
0 |
|
Minnesota |
43 |
42 |
-1 |
|
Missouri |
14 |
16 |
2 |
|
Montana |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
Nebraska |
611 |
660 |
49 |
|
New Jersey |
2 |
2 |
0 |
|
New York |
2 |
2 |
0 |
|
North Carolina |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
North Dakota |
2 |
1 |
-1 |
|
Ohio |
2 |
3 |
1 |
|
Oklahoma |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
Oregon |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
Pennsylvania |
1 |
|
-1 |
|
South Dakota |
13 |
13 |
0 |
|
Tennessee |
3 |
2 |
-1 |
|
Texas |
21 |
19 |
-2 |
|
Utah |
|
1 |
1 |
|
Virginia |
1 |
1 |
0 |
|
Washington |
3 |
3 |
0 |
|
West Virginia |
|
1 |
1 |
|
Wisconsin |
17 |
15 |
-2 |
|
Wyoming |
|
1 |
1 |
|
Grand Total |
945 |
979 |
34 |
Retention
The college again proved itself a retention leader on campus. If students start with us, they stay. Our first-year retention rate was a historic high at 91.2% and only trailed the College of Architecture. Our second- and third-year retention rates were both campus-leading at 85.6% and 76.6%, respectively.
|
College |
1st Year |
2nd Year |
3rd Year |
|
ANR |
85.4% |
79.6% |
64.3% |
|
ARH |
91.8% |
78.2% |
75.2% |
|
ASC |
81.3% |
73.0% |
66.3% |
|
COB |
87.1% |
76.1% |
70.5% |
|
EHS |
83.8% |
73.1% |
67.1% |
|
ENG |
84.8% |
70.6% |
65.0% |
|
FPA |
85.1% |
75.9% |
64.6% |
|
GEN |
80.4% |
63.5% |
55.5% |
|
JMC |
91.2% |
85.6% |
76.6% |
After a drop in students enrolling in 2020, the college has seen steadily increasing first-year retention rates.
Graduation Rates
The College achieved the third-highest four-year graduation, slightly behind the College of Architecture and the College of Business, who both saw significant increases in their rates this year. The college again held the highest five-year graduation rate on campus. Our six-year graduation isn’t as impressive as the four and five-year rates, providing an opportunity for improvement.
|
College |
Four Year |
Five Year |
Six Year |
|
ANR |
59.5% |
72.9% |
74.7% |
|
ARH |
67.0% |
75.2% |
72.2% |
|
ASC |
52.5% |
61.1% |
65.3% |
|
COB |
63.9% |
69.3% |
69.9% |
|
EHS |
59.4% |
65.2% |
65.9% |
|
ENG |
47.0% |
63.2% |
70.4% |
|
FPA |
48.7% |
67.6% |
68.2% |
|
GEN |
39.4% |
47.9% |
48.9% |
|
JMC |
61.7% |
76.7% |
64.3% |
After a downward trend, the college’s four-year graduation rate has rebounded over the past two years. A four-year rate of 61.7% is a historic high for the college.
The college’s five-year graduation rate rebounded this year after three years of downward trend.
The college’s six-year graduation rate has been trending down for three years. We will need to investigate this trend and make adjustments to ensure that as many students as possible graduate from the college.
Graduate Students
Overall, the college saw a decrease of one graduate student in fall 2023, dropping from 65 to 64 students. This small decline is impressive, given that in May 2023, the college had a historically large graduating class of 27 students.
Class Level
The college did a good job of increasing the number of first-time graduate students, experiencing a 43.8% increase between fall 2022 and fall 2023. We did experience a 16.3% decline in returning graduate students. We will need to examine our graduate student retention strategies to improve this figure in future years.
|
Class Level |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
% Change |
|
First-time Graduate, Degree Seeking |
16 |
23 |
43.8% |
|
Other Graduate, Degree Seeking |
49 |
41 |
-16.3% |
|
Total |
65 |
64 |
-1.5% |
Residency
The number of non-resident students declined, while resident students increased. Recent efforts to recruit graduate students have been locally focused. We will need to expand our recruitment efforts to out-of-state markets to increase non-resident enrollment.
|
Graduate |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
% Change |
|
Non-Resident |
27 |
20 |
-25.90% |
|
Resident |
38 |
44 |
15.80% |
|
Grand Total |
65 |
64 |
-1.50% |
Program Plans
Program growth came in the public relations and social media graduate certificate, while the master’s degree saw a decline of one student. The financial communications graduate certificate has struggled to achieve any notable enrollment since its inception and has now been hidden. Future enrollment in this program is not expected.
|
Plan |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
% Change |
|
FNCO - Financial Communications |
1 |
|
-100.0% |
|
JAMC - Journalism & Mass Comm |
51 |
50 |
-2.0% |
|
PRSM - Public Relations &social media |
13 |
14 |
7.7% |
|
Total |
65 |
64 |
-1.5% |
Master’s Specialization (JAMC)
Integrated media and communications continues to dominate our master's program enrollment with 35 students, while professional journalism only has seven students enrolled. The number of students who haven’t declared a specialization increased from 5 to 8. We will need to examine recruitment and onboarding to ensure that students declare a specialization early to stay on track for their degree.
|
Specialization |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
% Change |
|
Integrated Media Communications |
37 |
35 |
-5.4% |
|
Professional Journalism |
9 |
7 |
-22.2% |
|
No Specialization |
5 |
8 |
60% |
|
Total |
51 |
50 |
-1.9% |
Race/Ethnicity
The number of underrepresented students in our graduate program remained flat between 2022 and 2023. The overall proportion of underrepresented students increased as the total enrollment in the program decreased.
|
Race/Ethnicity |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
|
Asian |
1 |
2 |
|
Black or African American |
4 |
3 |
|
Hispanic |
3 |
2 |
|
Two or more races |
4 |
3 |
|
U.S. Nonresident |
6 |
8 |
|
Unknown race and ethnicity |
1 |
1 |
|
White |
46 |
45 |
|
Grand Total |
65 |
64 |
|
Race Ethnicity |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
|
Asian |
1.5% |
3.1% |
|
Black or African American |
6.2% |
4.7% |
|
Hispanic |
4.6% |
3.1% |
|
Two or more races |
6.2% |
4.7% |
|
U.S. Nonresident |
9.2% |
12.5% |
|
Unknown race and ethnicity |
1.5% |
1.6% |
|
White |
70.8% |
70.3% |
|
Grand Total |
100.0% |
100.0% |
Gender
Our graduate programs remain dominated by female enrollment. However, enrollment of male students did improve this year growing from 32.3% of total enrollment to 29.1%.
|
Gender |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
|
Female |
44 |
39 |
|
Male |
21 |
25 |
|
Grand Total |
65 |
64 |
|
Gender |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
|
Female |
67.7% |
60.9% |
|
Male |
32.3% |
39.1% |
|
Grand Total |
65 |
64 |
Nationality
International student enrollment grew from seven in fall 2022 to eight in fall 2023. Given the challenge in international student enrollment, any growth should be celebrated.
State
Domestic graduate students hailed from nine different states. Enrollment across the states was diffuse, with only one student from each state except Pennsylvania where two students hail from.
|
State |
Fall 2022 |
Fall 2023 |
|
Alabama |
|
1 |
|
California |
2 |
1 |
|
Georgia |
1 |
1 |
|
International |
7 |
8 |
|
Iowa |
|
1 |
|
Kansas |
1 |
|
|
Minnesota |
1 |
|
|
Missouri |
1 |
|
|
Nebraska |
41 |
47 |
|
New Jersey |
1 |
|
|
Ohio |
1 |
|
|
Pennsylvania |
2 |
2 |
|
South Dakota |
1 |
1 |
|
Texas |
3 |
|
|
Utah |
1 |
1 |
|
Washington |
|
1 |
|
Wisconsin |
1 |
|
|
Wyoming |
1 |
|
|
Grand Total |
65 |
64 |