{"id":3893,"date":"2014-09-12T15:32:32","date_gmt":"2014-09-12T20:32:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/?p=3893"},"modified":"2014-09-15T17:02:39","modified_gmt":"2014-09-15T22:02:39","slug":"sau-enrollment-tops-3500-shatters-multiple-records","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/2014\/sau-enrollment-tops-3500-shatters-multiple-records\/","title":{"rendered":"SAU enrollment tops 3,500, shatters multiple records"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"SAU<\/a>

SAU attracted more freshman students this year than ever before. They gathered for Mulerider Roundup to learn about SAU\u2019s complete college experience before their first day of classes in August.<\/p><\/div>\n

For the first time in its 105 year history, Southern Arkansas University has more than 3,500 students enrolled on its Magnolia campus, and numerous enrollment records were broken as the fall 2014 numbers became official today.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is exciting to see enrollment in Magnolia top 3,500 for the first time in our history,\u201d said SAU President Dr. David Rankin.\u00a0\u201cIt is particularly rewarding to see increases in both undergraduate and graduate numbers, a record freshman class, and a significant increase in the number of students living on campus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Total enrollment for the semester was up 141 over fall 2013 with 3,545 students registering for classes. This represents an increase of 4.14 percent. Of those, 3,037 are undergraduates, and 508 are pursuing graduate degrees, setting a new record for the School of Graduate Studies.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In a message to University employees earlier this week, Rankin attributed the enrollment records to the hard work of the SAU faculty and staff.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>

A SAU Computer Game and Animation Design student sketches digital characters for one of his new game ideas. SAU\u2019s record enrollments are due in part because of SAU\u2019s new and unique degree programs, such as this one which is the only one of its kind in Arkansas.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cIn the challenging environment higher education finds itself in today, an increase in student numbers does not just happen.\u00a0It takes a dedicated and concentrated effort and many hours of hard work to see this accomplished,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Dr. Donna Allen, vice president for student affairs, echoed Rankin\u2019s comments.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am extremely grateful for everyone\u2019s hard work in helping this record number of students have the opportunity to have the complete college experience by enrolling at SAU,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Other broken records include the number of students living on campus. This year, 1,538 students have chosen to reside in on-campus residence halls and apartments, pushing University housing to its maximum capacity. Compared to last year, on-campus living is up 91 students.<\/p>\n

The international student population has hit an all-time high with 154 students enrolled from 39 countries. This number is up from 99 international students in 2013.<\/p>\n

The SAU Honors College has enrolled a record 61 new students, bringing its total enrollment to 170 \u2013 the highest total enrollment in program history.<\/p>\n

\"This<\/a>

This year\u2019s record enrollment made for a packed crowd at the annual bed races during SAU\u2019s Family Day on September 6.<\/p><\/div>\n

Administrators are attributing the University\u2019s recent growth to several new and innovative programs that are unique to SAU. The computer game and animation design program began in fall 2013 and boasts 65 students. The new Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree \u2013 the only degree of its kind in south Arkansas \u2013 began this semester and already has 50 students enrolled.<\/p>\n

In athletics, 51 new students have arrived to participate in the Muleriders\u2019 reinstated track and field program.<\/p>\n

\u201cNew programs and events have gotten the attention of potential students, and we are very excited about their decision to attend SAU,\u201d said Dean of Enrollment Services Sarah Jennings.\u00a0\u201cThe faculty and staff have done a great job working together to attract students, and I am especially proud of the recruiting efforts by our admissions and enrollment services team.\u00a0We are looking forward to a great year at SAU!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For the first time in its 105 year history, Southern Arkansas University has more than 3,500 students enrolled on its Magnolia campus, and numerous enrollment records were broken as the fall 2014 numbers became official today. \u201cIt is exciting to see enrollment in Magnolia top 3,500 for the first time in our history,\u201d said SAU… Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":791,"featured_media":3895,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[271,94,33,7753,159,126],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-3893","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-academics","8":"category-admissions","9":"category-graduate-studies","10":"category-homepage","11":"category-honors-college","12":"category-university-housing","13":"entry"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3893","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/791"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3893"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3893\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3895"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3893"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3893"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3893"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}