Trine expecting another record year on main campus

ANGOLA (08/01/2018) As Trine University puts the finishing touches on its newest residence hall, the university is planning to welcome another record class of undergraduates to its Angola main campus.

Projections for fall 2018 indicate main campus undergraduate enrollment will rise more than 4 percent over last year to top 2,000 students, which includes a 7.5 percent estimated increase in the residential population. The growth will boost Trine's overall enrollment to more than 5,000 students for the second straight year, once its eight education centers, graduate students and high school students dually enrolled in Trine courses are factored in.

"The ongoing growth in our undergraduate student population is a testament to the quality and value of a Trine University education," said Earl D. Brooks II, Ph.D., Trine University president. "Students continue to be attracted by Trine University's 99 percent job placement rate, expert faculty, generous financial aid and vibrant campus atmosphere."

Fueling the growth will be a nearly 7 percent increase in the number of returning students as well as similar growth in Trine's incoming freshman class.

Scott Goplin, vice president of enrollment management, said the increase in new freshmen is on top of a dramatic 30 percent jump in freshman enrollment in 2017. The returning student number reflects 80 percent freshman retention numbers over the past two years, a figure several percentage points above the national average.

"We not only have more students coming to Trine University, we have more staying here once they arrive," said Goplin.

To accommodate its continued growth in residential students, Trine will open the new Stadium Hall residence adjacent to Reiners Hall at the beginning of the fall semester, adding 243 beds to the university's housing capacity.

The university's growth is not limited to its Angola undergraduates. Trine will welcome its first Master of Physician Assistant Studies class to its Health Sciences Education Center in Fort Wayne this fall, adding 28 graduate students to that location.