Day: October 18, 2011

Across the United States, enrollment of new graduate students has declined somewhat, while the overall graduate school enrollment has increased only slightly (1.1 percent). However, those newest numbers, reported by the Council of Graduate Schools, are not reflected at Tech.

Bucking the national trend, graduate student enrollment here has increased nearly everywhere on campus. Total graduate enrollment sits at a new record of 1,303, while new master’s students have increased 6.9 percent, and new doctoral students have increased 4.3 percent.

So, why the difference?

“Students are interested in coming to our campus because of the quality of our faculty,” says Graduate School Dean Jackie Huntoon. “Many hear about us from friends and relatives who tell them that we provide great education opportunities in a wonderful place.”

According to Jacque Smith, director of graduate marketing and advancement for the Graduate School, there are other reasons.  “Of course, we provide a quality education,” he says, “and we combine a lot of resources with smaller numbers, so it’s a highly personalized graduate education.”

And research experiences at Tech are different, according to Smith. “We’ve always been known for hands-on, real-life research and lab experiences.” Less debt and more job offers are also incentives for students to seek education beyond the bachelor’s degree, he says.  “And, although it’s especially true for the STEM [science, technology, engineering, and math] disciplines, we are experiencing growth in most areas,” he says.

See enrollment for further breakdown of program enrollment data for fall.

Story originally published in Tech Today.