POCATELLO, Idaho — Idaho State University saw a 5.1% decrease in total students enrolling for the Fall 2020 semester, a downturn school officials say is tied to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A total of 11,786 students are enrolled at the Pocatello-based college this semester, down from 12,425 in Fall 2019. Despite the pandemic, ISU has attracted 143 more graduate students to its programs, a 6.9% increase.
Transfers have also increased, with a 2.9% jump in students transferring from somewhere else in Idaho and a whopping 41.7 percent increase in non-Idaho resident transfer students.
Undergraduate enrollment, in contrast, fell by 7.5%.
The university estimates that a significant portion of the overall decrease were Early College students - those dual-enrolled in ISU courses while in high school.
University officials say they have 430 fewer dual-enrolled students this year, likely due to the irregular timing of high school schedules related to the spread of COVID-19.
"Our University came together as a team to focus on fully supporting our students during a time of great uncertainty," President Kevin Satterlee said. "The COVID-19 pandemic changed everything, but throughout all of the uncertainty and adjustments to our operations, we have remained focused on our mission of education. We know COVID-19 impacted our fall enrollment, and we will continue to provide a safe learning environment for our students in the spring."
At KTVB, we’re focusing our news coverage on the facts and not the fear around the virus. To see our full coverage, visit our coronavirus section, here: www.ktvb.com/coronavirus.
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