Southeast student retention hits record high; overall enrollment declines

Southeast Missouri State University set a record in student retention this semester, though total student enrollment is down from this time last year, according to university officials.

Dean of students Debbie Below said for the first time, Southeast has topped 75 percent student retention.

“We hope that remains after the four-week census,” she said, “but we look forward to that continuing to grow.”

Below, who also is Southeast’s vice president for enrollment management and student success, said her office’s goal is 80 percent, and a number of initiatives are underway at the university to help reach that.

Below said the Master Advisor program at Southeast trains faculty in a more “holistic” approach to advising, with an eye to recognizing when a student is at risk of dropping out and how to intervene.

In math and English remediation courses, Below said, a co-requisite model allows students to be enrolled in a credit-bearing course while working on remediation.

“At the end of the day, the student is paying for fewer credit hours and spending less time in remediation,” Below said.

That’s good news for the university and good news for students who sometimes need more academic confidence, Below said.

Thursday’s first-day fall enrollment report showed a 26 percent decline in international-student enrollment, which follows national trends, the release stated.

Beginning freshman enrollment is off 2.7 percent, at 1,824 total students, from this time last fall.

But the 4.6 percent decline in overall student enrollment is mostly due to the drop in international-student enrollment, the release stated.

In an Aug. 4 interview, Kevin Timlin, executive director of international education and services, said it’s easy to look at the travel ban enacted earlier this year by the Trump administration as an explanation.

But Timlin said it’s more likely students — and their parents — are seeing uncertainty and the costs of applying and studying overseas might not make sense right now.

Total enrollment stands at 11,006 students as of the first day of classes.

University residence halls are at 100 percent capacity. Eight students are on a wait list to be housed on campus, and the university temporarily reopened Cheney Hall until the 70 students housed there can be placed elsewhere, according to university officials.

Transfer-student enrollment is up to 581 this fall, according to the news release, and total online enrollment is at nearly 1,300, up 6.4 percent from this time last year.

The first-day enrollment report reflects numbers from the first full day of fall semester classes, which began Monday.

Southeast will issue a final census report in four weeks, Below said.

mniederkorn@semissourian.com

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