The Academical Village, and its peers across the nation, has been feeling the surge of an ever-growing influx of high school seniors, according to a recent report by the U.S. Department of Education.
Total college enrollment in public and private two-year and four-year institutions is projected to reach a record of 14.9 million students in 1999, and will continue to rise over the next decade, according to the report which was released last month.
As national enrollment numbers increase, Virginia is following suit. The University can expect a 4.4 percent growth in the first-year class over the next five years, according to projections made by Office of Institutional Assessment & Studies in collaboration with the Office of the Provost.
The University's current undergraduate enrollment is 12,475, but over the last five years, the University has experienced a 6 percent growth in the first-year class. The last decade has seen a 13.7 percent growth, according to George Stovall, director of Institutional Assessment & Studies.
The increased enrollment trend at colleges and universities across the nation "is due to the baby boom echo," Department of Education spokesman Tom Lyon said.
The "baby boom echo" refers to the children of the baby boomer generation, who now are approaching college age, said Lyon.
Education School Dean David W. Breneman also attributes the enrollment trend to the "baby boom echo," but said two other factors are responsible for record college enrollment as well -- regional population growth and changing demographics.
Breneman said he foresees "no dramatic transformation in the nature of the undergraduate experience" at the University, despite increasing enrollment numbers.
To prepare for the surge of first years at the University in the next half-decade, an additional dorm is under construction in the Alderman Road housing area.
"There are plans for additional upper class housing as well," Housing Division Director Mark Doherty said.
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