UCA’s undergraduate enrollment dropped for the fifth fall semester in a row since 2019 as the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, Arkansas State University at Jonesboro and other University of Arkansas campuses recorded increases in enrollment.

UCA’s enrollment numbers, alongside credit hours, dropped in fall 2023. Credit hours are an important measure of the university’s overall financial health, according to Provost Patricia Poulter.

In a February board of trustees meeting, Poulter said, “We know measuring student credit hour production … helps us understand the health of the institution in terms of being able to fund our initiatives.”

In fall 2023, the total student credit hour production measured 121,843 hours, a 1.2% decrease from fall 2022 and a 10.7% decrease from fall 2019.

• In fall 2022, total student credit hours measured 123,285

• In fall 2021, total student credit hours measured 125,285

• In fall 2020, total student credit hours measured 131,015

• In fall 2019, total student credit hours measured 136,426

In March 2022, Davis pointed to the importance of measuring student credit hours over enrollment.

“The reality is headcount is nothing but PR. Student credit hours are everything,” he said.

UCA’s enrollment and credit hours are down, but the two may not always go hand-in-hand depending on the demographic of the student body.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock reported a similar 1% decrease in enrollment, but a 1% increase in student credit hour production due to a larger percentage of full-time students and a drop in part-time students, according to senate.arkansas.gov.

UCA’s total graduate enrollment — reported as 1,906 students — dropped by about 0.7%, however, its student credit hour production increased by 0.4% at 15,101 credit hours.

First-time-graduate student enrollment is up by 8%, jumping from 491 students in fall 2022 to 531 in fall 2023.

UCA reported 7,884 undergraduate students were enrolled — a 1.4% decrease from 2022 and a 13.7% decrease from fall 2019.

Total undergraduate credit hours measured 105,316 in fall 2023 — a 1.5% decrease from fall 2022 and a 12.7% decrease from fall 2019.

In his campus talks, President Davis often talks about the enrollment cliff – a decline in traditionally college-aged students, resulting from lower birth rates around the time of the 2008 recession.

Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management Kevin Thomas said that the drop in enrollment was expected.

“There’s a couple of things that are happening that I think are important to think about when you look at the numbers,” Thomas said.

“One is none of its unexpected. We’re in the midst of what nationwide has been referred to as an enrollment cliff because there are less 18-year-olds than there were any year previous.

“So there was some expectations on our end that we knew that enrollment was going to have a slight decline,” he said.

Despite this, many Arkansas colleges recorded increases in fall 2023 enrollment, including:

• University of Arkansas at Fayetteville

• Six ASU system institutions excluding Henderson State University at Arkadelphia

• Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia

• University of Arkansas at Fort Smith

• University of Arkansas Monticello

• UA Community College at Hope-Texarkana

• Phillips Community College of the University of Arkansas

• UA Community College in Morrilton

• UA Rich Mountain in Mena

• Cossatot Community College

• UA Community College at Batesville

Thomas said that enrollment works to advertise UCA to students at two-year colleges and help “those students understand that there’s a pathway for them to come and finish their degree here at UCA.”

UCA’s fall 2023 transfer enrollment is down, reported at 471 students — a 14.7% decrease from fall 2022.

Female students continue to outpace male students in enrollment, with fall 2023 measures at 6,621 females to 3,529 males. However, the male demographic experienced a lower percentage decrease at just 0.03% compared with the female cohort’s 1.9% decrease.

As for the racial and ethnic breakdowns of the fall 2023 total enrollment, most groups saw decreases.

However, the number of Hispanic students grew from 607 in fall 2022 to 664 in fall 2023. Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander students grew from eight in fall 2022 to 10 in fall 2023.

The average ACT score of first-time undergraduate students remains the same as fall 2022 at 22.4. Additionally, the average GPA of 3.63 remains the same as fall 2022.

The College of Arts, Humanities, & Social Sciences generated slightly higher semester credit hours compared with fall 2022 — as did the College of Business and the College of Education.

The College of Health and Behavioral Science, and the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics both saw drops in total semester credit hours compared with fall 2022.

For more information about enrollment, UCA’s demographics or student credit hours, visit Institutional Research’s webpage on uca.edu.