Illinois State University enrolled 21,577 students this fall, a modest 2.04% decline from last year’s enrollment.
ISU still sees strong interest from Illinois residents, as well as growth in transfer students and participation in the Honors Program.
“Thousands of students continue to choose an Illinois State education because of the breadth and quality of our academic programs, and the supportive community they find here,” ISU President Aondover Tarhule said.
The previous first-year class was the largest in university history, with last year having record-breaking enrollment of 21,994 students. This year is slightly higher than the 2024-25 school year, which was 21,546 students, though still represents a modest decline from last year.
“This class is still among the 10 largest classes in our history and among the top five largest in the last 25 years,” Jeff Mavros, the executive director of admissions and recruitment marketing, said.
Highlights of this year’sentering class include 3,891 first-time-in-college students, with an average GPA of 3.64; 1,840 transfer students, a 7% increase from the previous year; and the largest incoming Honors Program class in university history.
The decline does not come as a surprise to ISU.
“A greater focus might be placed on transfer students, graduate students and those pursuing online options to help bolster declining [first-time-in-college] numbers moving forward,” Mavros said.
The university is taking steps to rebound first-year enrollments for Fall 2027, including participating in the direct admission program through One Click College Admit, which could generate new interest in ISU.
“We are reviewing every aspect of our on-campus visit and event programs to find new ways to make the experience for prospective students even more individualized and engaging,” Mavros said.
“We’ve secured new advertising partnerships in key recruitment markets to promote our strengths and increase brand awareness, and we’re looking for ways to more strategically award scholarship dollars to admitted students in this cycle,” Mavros continued.
ISU official enrollment for Fall 2026 was calculated after the tenth day of classes.
Total enrollment: 21,577
First Time in College: 3,891
Transfer students: 1,840
Undergraduates: 19,128
Graduates: 2,449
International students: 432
Olivia Walker is a News and Features Reporter. Walker can be reached at [email protected].
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