Reaping the benefits of a recruiting drive aimed at attracting prospective liberal arts students to Northwestern, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences is slated to enroll a banner freshman class next year, said Rebecca Dixon, associate provost for university enrollment.
Weinberg is ahead of last year’s pace in tuition deposits received from incoming freshmen by 12 percent, or more than 100 students, Dixon said.
“Increasing the yield of admits who accept offers for Weinberg was one of our goals, and we are pleased with that achievement,” she said. “Colleges of arts and sciences exist everywhere, so if NU seems more appealing to high-quality students, then it follows that Weinberg will also hold high appeal.”
But Dixon also said those numbers may not stick, as 2,044 students have mailed in tuition deposits for a university-wide freshman class intended to be about 1,925 students. But there are always more confirmed freshmen at this time of year than who actually register in September, she said.
“Given the past history of the number of students who eventually must withdraw their acceptances, I could guesstimate the freshman class this fall at 1,925 to 1,940 students,” she said.
Because the number of eventual withdrawals will be evenly distributed throughout NU’s six schools, Weinberg administrators still celebrated their school’s increased enrollment.
Weinberg Dean Eric Sundquist said the number of students choosing Weinberg over other schools is “very gratifying.”
“It shows that our faculty and programs continue to attract some of the nation’s most talented and creative students,” he said.
Dixon attributed the reason for the change to a greater mailing stream for prospective students and applicants whose fields of interest seemed to be geared around arts and sciences. Dixon said the admissions office worked with Weinberg to introduce a new brochure and also used Weinberg’s old brochure at a better time during the mailing cycle.
While Weinberg put up a “dandy” new home page for admitted freshmen in early April, Dixon also said NU’s reputation may have played a role.
“We cannot overlook the fact that NU’s image and visibility simply get stronger every year,” she said.
Although Weinberg’s projected freshman class increased, the number of minority students to be enrolled at NU stayed virtually the same.
The incoming freshman class currently is composed of 104, or 5.1 percent, African-American students; 88, or 4.3 percent, Hispanic students; 350, or 17.1 percent, Asian-American students; and less than 1 percent American Indian students. Students from foreign countries make up 5.2 percent of the class.
Laura LaBauve-Maher, acting coordinator for Hispanic and Latino Student Services, said she was “thrilled” that the number of incoming Hispanic students increased by about six from last year. LaBauve-Maher also said if strong community foundations are built at NU, then enrollment numbers will follow.
“As the Latino community grows on this campus, it will ultimately help the students who want to come to NU from places with large Hispanic communities,” she said. “Some students want to see that they can have a community of people like them at their college.”
But Tiffany Berry, an officer with For Members Only, said she was disappointed when she heard the number of African-American students enrolled for next year decreased by 10.
“I want to see more African-American represented on campus,” said Berry, a Weinberg sophomore. “I really don’t know what the problem is and why NU isn’t as attractive as the schools we are losing good African-American students to.”
Berry said although FMO “jumped through hoops” to showcase NU’s close African-American community during Day at NU, greater manpower is needed throughout the year on a more consistent basis.
“Instead of waiting until the students get accepted, we should be involved with the process throughout the year,” Berry said.
But Dixon said the high number of tuition deposits prove a strong interest remains in NU across the board – and that too much attention was paid to an almost 5 percent decrease in applicants this year.
Dixon said she believes some applicants knew they didn’t measure up to NU’s standards and chose not to apply, realizing they would not gain admission.
“Applicants were self-selecting out in my opinion, based on several years of observation about whom we were admitting and whom we were denying,” she said. “Meanwhile, (NU’s) appeal and reputation have been rising.”
