University of Minnesota Looks to Enroll More Local Students

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The University of Minnesota is looking for ways to halt the enrollment trend of losing local high school students to neighboring states and bolster admissions to its system campuses.

The university's Systemwide Enrollment Planning Taskforce in June presented potential ways to curb losing more high school graduates than it attracts, Minnesota Daily reported.

"We get our pockets picked every year from states and universities from across the nation," said Bob McMaster, the vice provost and dean of undergraduate education.

Barbara Keinath is the vice chancellor for academic and student affairs at the Crookston campus. She says the task force is considering ways to encourage students to apply to the university's other campuses if they're not admitted to the campus of their choice.

Keinath said the goal of offering enrollment at other campuses will be to highlight and promote the specialties of each campus.

"What (the task force is) working on right now is creating a marketing communication plan so we can better articulate to students in Minnesota the quality of each of the (campuses)," McMaster said.

Data from the Office of Undergraduate Education shows Minnesota has seen students leave the state for college than come into it from neighboring states since the 1980s.

Some students attend college in Minnesota for select benefits, while others leave the state because of opportunities elsewhere.

"I really wanted to go to a place that I didn't see myself living in for the rest of my life. (I wanted) to see what it's like to live in a smaller town. The (University) was too familiar to me," said Gillian Holte, a senior journalism student at Iowa State University from Eden Prairie, Minnesota.

The task force aims to increase enrollment by 3,000 students, including 2,000 Minnesota residents and 1,000 non-residents, by 2024.