OU’s undergraduate enrollment for the Athens campus drops about 7 percent each year between Fall and Spring semesters, according to data from the Office of Institutional Research.
About 1,000 students left Ohio University between the end of Fall Semester and the start of Spring Semester this year, according to preliminary university data.
Students who leave the university often transfer to other colleges or drop out, Jenny Klein, assistant dean for student persistence and success, said. About 650 of those students graduated in December, according to a previous Post report.
That decrease is not uncommon for the university, according to the yearly data.
Undergraduate enrollment at OU's Athens campus drops about 7 percent each year between Fall and Spring semesters, according to data from the Office of Institutional Research.
“Spring terms traditionally are slightly lower than fall,” Craig Cornell, senior vice provost for Strategic Enrollment Management, said in an email. “There are a lot of reasons for this, ranging from availability of programs, student retention term to term, student choices related to work-life balances, etc.”
OU has had record enrollment for the past three years, according to a previous Post report. Those enrollment numbers drop after students return from winter break.
The students who leave in that time period are not always freshmen.
“New freshman often represent a portion of the students who do not return, but it really is spread across all types of programs, class levels, colleges and campuses,” Cornell said in an email.
Ashley Bowe, a sophomore studying sociology and criminology, said she didn’t see many students leave the university, but she was surprised about 1,000 left during winter break.
“I really haven’t seen anybody leave, so I don’t know why that is,” she said, adding that she thought students would be more likely to leave at the end of the academic year.
Other universities
Cornell said enrollment change is "common" for all traditional higher education institutions.
Other universities in Ohio have seen a variety of enrollment changes this academic year.
In general, Kent State University has lost about 250 undergraduate students on its main campus between Fall and Spring semesters for the past few years, according to the university’s Office of Institutional Research. For the 2015-16 academic year, it lost 12 students.
At Miami University’s main campus in Oxford, about 600 undergraduate students left the university between Fall and Spring semesters this year, Miami spokeswoman Claire Wagner said. She said the number includes students who graduated, transferred or dropped out.
Housing
Pete Trentacoste, executive director of OU Housing and Residence Life, said the number of students in the dorms also decreases between Fall and Spring semesters each year.
About 8,300 students were housed in dorms in fall 2015, according to university data provided by Trentacoste. As of the fifth week of classes this spring, about 7,800 students were housed. Those numbers include sophomores and upperclassmen.
“Historically, numbers are highest in fall and go down in Spring Semester,” Trentacoste said in an email. “This is common for all traditional higher education institutions that have residence halls.”
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Retention efforts
Klein, who works in OU’s University College, said students typically leave the university between their first and second years, but officials monitor declining enrollment between semesters, as well.
“It’s often between first year and second year, but what we know about the decision-making time period is that students often make the decision within the first six weeks if they’re going to stay or go, but they depart after their first year,” Klein said.
Klein said the rule requiring students to live on campus for two years could serve as an indicator of higher retention than the schools that allow students to move off campus after their first year.
“The ... rule exists because we know it’s good for students to live on campus, because students should not be worried about constantly cooking meals and paying bills,” she said.
Bowe said if she were considering switching universities or dropping out, it would be helpful to reach out to someone who works for the university to receive guidance.
“I would probably go to the adviser or financial aid office for help,” she said.
If a student is struggling and considering leaving the university, Klein suggests he or she get involved.
“Students who are involved in the community feel a sense of engagement and connectedness that will help this place feel more like home,” Klein said.
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