Ohio University’s class of 2021 has set a new record this academic year.
For the fifth consecutive year, more than 4,000 first-year students are enrolled at OU. The freshman class, however, has a slightly higher ACT score and GPA than the class of 2020. This year’s freshman class has an average ACT score of 24.1 and an average high school GPA of 3.54.
“Ohio University has demonstrated a commitment to offer quality educational resources to all students regardless of their race, zip code or family income,” OU President Duane Nellis said in a news release. “The Class of 2021 exemplifies the meaning behind Ohio University’s dual mission of educational access and academic excellence.”
During the 2016-17 academic year, first-year students’ average composite ACT score was 24, and their average high school GPA was 3.48.
Along with test scores and GPAs, 18.3 percent of the first-year students this academic year graduated in the top 10 percent of their high school class, which is a 3.3 percent increase from last year’s freshmen and is one of the highest percentages in the past 15 years at OU.
When it comes to first-generation students, the class of 2021 has the second-highest number of those students in recent history. More than 25 percent of the class is the first from their family to attend a four-year university to obtain a bachelor’s degree.
While the freshman class is entering on a high note in academics, OU as a whole is experiencing a decrease in enrollment.
Enrollment on OU’s Athens campus, including graduate and undergraduate students at all campus and eLearning programs, has decreased by approximately 1.5 percent. With a total of 35,877 students enrolled, 4,045 of those are freshmen, a decrease of 6.1 percent from Fall Semester 2016 when 4,332 students were enrolled as of the first day of classes.
Additionally, graduate and medical student enrollment have both increased by 3.1 percent and 14.5 percent, respectively.
