Tag: Recruiting

Record Enrollment for Spring 2010

The final preliminary spring 2010 enrollment numbers are out and the Graduate School is pleased to announce that  Michigan Tech has a record enrollment of graduate students.

Total graduate headcount is 1189 which is an increase of 212 or 21.7% over the spring 2009 numbers.

Total graduate student credit hours are 8162.5 which is an increase of 1411.0 or 20.9% over the Spring 2009 numbers.

Total 1st time master’s students are 71 which is an increase of 21 or 42.0% over the spring 2009 numbers.

Total 1st time doctoral students are 31 which is an increase of 6 or 24.0% over the spring 2009 numbers.

The Graduate School would like to thank everyone involved in achieving these numbers from our graduate students, faculty, directors and assistants, to the Registrar’s office for diligently working to recruit and enroll the newest students in our programs.  These numbers are very encouraging and are moving us closer to our goal of having 1250 graduate students at Michigan Tech.

For more information about future recruiting efforts and ways the Graduate School can assist programs with recruiting, please contact Jacque Smith, director of graduate marketing and advancement.

Read more in Tech Today.

Thanks–and Recruiting Begins Anew

Published in Tech Today

The Graduate School would like to thank everyone involved in achieving the strong fall enrollment numbers. With recruitment for fall 2010 underway, the school once again asks current graduate students and faculty to help in recruiting prospective students.

To view a list of recruitment events, visit the Graduate School Recruitment Calendar.

Events where we need someone to attend:

  • September 23–University of Wisconsin-Platteville
  • October 7-8–University of Illinois–Urbana and Chicago
  • October 13-14–University of Wisconsin-Madison and University of Minnesota-Twin Cities

Contact Jacque Smith (jacque@mtu.edu or 487-1434) if you are willing to represent the University at any of the recruitment events. The Graduate School offers travel funding and logistical assistance.

Enrollment Up Again

Published in Tech Today

by Jennifer Donovan, director of public relations

Enrollment rose again this school year, topping last year’s number by 118 students. Fall enrollment figures tallied last night totaled 7,132.

A surge in Graduate School enrollment accounted for the increase, including increasing enrollment of international graduate students. The Graduate School reported 1,189 students, the most ever and a 21-percent increase over fall 2008. The number of international graduate students is up more than 17 percent.

“This is the highest headcount since 1983,” said President Glenn Mroz. “It shows that, increasingly, students see a Michigan Tech education as a high-return investment providing them with skills in great demand in our competitive world. Our strategic plan calls for increasing our graduate offerings while maintaining the size of undergraduate enrollment in high-demand science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. That is a critical way to provide the advanced training that will support the expansion of the entrepreneurial knowledge economy in Michigan.

“But to accomplish those goals,” Mroz continued, “something must be done about the issue of state funding. We are educating 40 percent more students than we did 40 years ago with the same level of state support.”

Jacqueline Huntoon, dean of the Graduate School, said she is extremely pleased to see such a large increase in graduate enrollment this year. “This shows that everyone at Michigan Tech is committed to increasing the size and quality of our graduate programs, in accordance with the University’s strategic plan,” she said. “It is because of our outstanding faculty, staff and current students that we are able to attract so many students from around the world.”

The record graduate student numbers include approximately 100 nondegree-seeking automotive engineers enrolled in a special advanced propulsion technology course offered in Detroit by Michigan Tech and the Engineering Society of Detroit.

Among undergraduates, the average ACT score of entering first-year students rose to 26.0 this year. The ACT score is one of Tech’s key indicators in achieving its strategic goal of attracting outstanding students, faculty and staff.

“We are attracting an academically more talented freshman class,” said John Lehman, assistant vice president for enrollment. “That indicates that our scholarship and financial aid programs are doing what they are supposed to do, enabling those who have need and are strong academically to attend Michigan Tech.”

The percentage of new female students at Tech also rose, from 23 percent last year to 26 percent this year. The University also saw a 9.8-percent increase in undergraduate transfer students, reflecting Michigan Tech’s enhanced efforts to reach out to community college students.

Undergraduate enrollment fell by 90 students this fall, to 5,943, although the number of transfer students rose by almost 10 percent. “The decrease is relatively minor and mostly related to the economy,” Lehman said. “Our undergraduate enrollment still stands well above totals from 2004 to 2007.”

International Graduate Student Applications Continue to Rise at Michigan Tech

Michigan Tech News

By Jennifer Donovan

August 26, 2009—

Unlike graduate schools nationwide, Michigan Technological University attracted more international graduate students this year than last. Numbers of applicants and accepted graduate students from India and South Korea—which dropped dramatically at graduate schools nationwide—also rose at Michigan Tech.

Last week, the Council of Graduate Schools issued a report showing that nationwide, admissions of international students to graduate schools dropped 3 percent, while admissions of students from India and South Korea dropped 16 percent   Applications for graduate school from international students rose only 4 percent nationwide, a lower rate of growth than in 2008.  Applications from India dropped 12 percent and from South Korea, 9 percent.

At Michigan Tech, applications from international graduate students rose 13 percent and admissions jumped 23 percent. Applications and admissions of graduate students from India and South Korea also rose at Tech.

“This is in part due to the fact that we offer STEM (science technology, engineering and mathematics) plus business, which draw students,” said Graduate School Dean Jacqueline Huntoon.  “It is also because Michigan Tech’s Graduate School staff work hard to recruit students, and the departments are helping out by responding to applications quickly. It’s really a team effort.”

Graduate school applications from US citizens and permanent residents also increased 28 percent from 2008 to 2009 at Michigan Tech. Nationally they also increased, but only by 6 percent. Admissions of US citizens and permanent residents increased 4 percent nationwide this year and 32 percent at Michigan Tech.

“Growing our Graduate School, both in numbers and in quality, is one of the goals in our Strategic Plan,” said President Glenn D. Mroz. “It’s an important way to increase our stature as a technological research university. This is also part of an effort to bring some of the best minds in the world to Michigan. That is critical for Michigan to be a player in the creative economy.”

The Council of Graduate Schools’ report was based on survey data submitted by 253 graduate schools, including Michigan Tech.

Michigan Technological University is a leading public research university, conducting research, developing new technologies and preparing students to create the future for a prosperous and sustainable world. Michigan Tech offers more than 130 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in engineering, forestry and environmental sciences, computing, technology, business and economics, natural and physical sciences, arts, humanities and social sciences.

Funding Available for Leading Graduate Student Visits

To support campus visits for leading graduate student candidates, the Graduate School has set aside $1,000 per department, with a maximum of $500 per student. Students who have applied for the highest degree offered by the program are eligible. Multiple requests may be submitted to utilize the $1,000 any time prior to June 1. Special consideration will be given to requests that contribute to meeting the University’s strategic goal of attracting and supporting a world-class and diverse student population.

Requests for campus visit funding can be submitted online.

The Graduate School is available to assist departments with campus visits. For more information, contact Jodi Lehman or Jacque Smith at 487-2327.