University Sees Jump in Academic Profile, Record Number of Returning Students, Improved Retention, Male/Female Ratio that Beats National Trend
With fall 2009 enrollment numbers final, Capital University is celebrating another year of success and a noticeable boost in the average student’s academic qualifications.
Capital’s class of 2013 is 698 students strong and boasts the best academic profile in 10 years, continuing the private, four-year undergraduate and graduate school’s streak of record undergraduate enrollment — despite an economic climate that caused unprecedented skittishness and had many private schools struggling to meet their targets.
This marks the fourth consecutive year the university has brought in an incoming class of nearly 700 students. Prior to 2006, incoming class size averaged 650. The university enrolled 610 first-time, first year students and a larger–than-expected group of 88 transfer students. The incoming class joined a record number of returning students to the Bexley campus — 1,536, which is a notable increase over the 1,513 returning students in 2008 and 1,518 in 2007. This brings total traditional undergraduate enrollment for fall 2009 to 2,234 degree-seeking students and 10 non-degree-seeking students, or 2,244 students.
While the retention figure isn’t final, early indications show it has improved by nearly 2 percent over last year, moving from 71.5 percent to a projected 74 percent. And with a higher percentage on incoming students living on campus — jumping to 89.1 percent from 82.2 percent in fall 2008 — that upward trend is likely to continue.
Even more impressive than the overall number of students in the class is its strong academic profile. With an average high school grade point average of 3.45, this year’s incoming class averages the highest high school GPA of any Capital class in 10 years. It also inched up the average ACT score by 0.1 percent from an even 24 in 2008, and a flat 23 in the nine previous years. The class also boasts 25 high school valedictorians. These numbers exceed the targets the school set at the beginning of the enrollment cycle — 3.38 for high school GPA and 23.8 for average ACT score.
“This is an exceptional class with impressive academic credentials and even more inspiring professional and personal aspirations,” President Denvy A. Bowman said. “They know what they want to do in life, and that at Capital they will develop the intellectual capabilities, creative and innovative thought, and professional know-how they will need to get started four years from now.”
Capital also continues to attract students from diverse ethnic, socioeconomic and geographic backgrounds, including more out-of-state students, and international students from Germany, Japan, Venezuela, China, South Korea and Tanzania.
And while the male/female student ratio approaches 40/60 at colleges and universities nationwide, Capital is achieving better balance. Males make up 45.9 percent of the incoming class. That’s a slight increase from 44.6 percent in 2008, 39.8 percent in 2007; 40.9 percent in 2006; and a low 39.5 percent in 2005.
The strong enrollment is an achievement that’s due in part to an affordability initiative launched by President Bowman in April, which kept the tuition increase to a 10 year-low and created three new grants to help incoming and returning students afford a Capital education.
“We anticipated the needs of our students and their families, which was a direct result of the economic downturn, and we responded in a timely and meaningful way,” Bowman said. “We continue to work closely with current students, prospective students and parents to understand their needs so that the university can take the right steps to help students accomplish their educational goals.”
Another contributing factor was a new conversation Capital started with prospective students. As part of a larger rebranding effort, the university also engaged students by using of social media tools like Facebook, Flickr and YouTube — enabling prospective students to interact with and be inspired by each other and by current students, faculty, staff and alumni. See for yourself at willyou.capital.edu.
Located in the Columbus, Ohio, neighborhood of Bexley, Capital University is a private, four-year undergraduate institution and graduate school. Capital prepares students for meaningful lives and purposeful careers through a relevant liberal arts core curriculum and deep professional programs taught by a renowned faculty that engages students. Capital consistently is ranked among the top master’s universities in the Midwest. Influenced by its Lutheran heritage, Capital places great emphasis on the free and open exchange of ideas, seeking out diverse perspectives, active participation in society, leadership and service. It is the oldest and one of the largest universities affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
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Contact: Nichole Johnson
Director of media relations and communications
Capital University
614-236-6945
Cell: 614-440-9158