Fall 2002 Enrollment Analysis

 (As of Census)

 

Mesa College Summary

 

As of census, 22,255 students were enrolled at Mesa College.  This was an increase of 9% (+1,840) over the previous fall 2001 semester.  Total FTES also increased from the previous year, but at a higher rate of 18% (7,312 in fall 2002 vs. 6,214 in fall 2001), suggesting that students enrolled in more courses.  This observation was supported by a 15% increase in the number of students enrolled full-time (7,066 in fall 2002 vs. 6,143 in fall 2001).

 

Further analysis of the fall 2002 enrollments show that 65% of the student population were continuing students, 25% were new to the college (first-time freshmen, 10%; first-time transfer, 15%), 10% were students who left the college for more than a year and returned, 1% were current high school students, and less than 1% were unknown.  In comparison to the previous year, these percentages did not change.

 

New student enrollment by college service area[1] was examined in order to identify any shifts in the enrollment pattern across service areas.  The results showed a significant increase in the number of first-time students from outside of the college’s service area.  In particular, there was an increase in the number of first-time freshmen from outside of the district, while the number of first-time transfers originating from the area serving Miramar College also increased.

 

Enrollment changes across various demographic variables were also analyzed.  The results showed a slight increase (not more than 2 percent points) in the proportion of students who were Latino or between the ages of 18 and 29.  Otherwise, there were no significant demographic changes.

 

Analysis of fall-to-fall persistence among first-time freshmen was also conducted.  Of the first-time freshmen enrolled at Mesa College in fall 2001, 52% persisted to the current semester (fall 2002).  This rate was slightly higher than the 51% rate in the previous year (persistence from fall 2000 to fall 2001).  

 

Persistence rates were also broken down by educational objective.  More than half of the first-time freshmen who intended to transfer (57%) or who were undecided (53%) persisted after their first year.  However, the persistence rates were lower for first-time freshmen who were seeking an associate degree (34%), certificate (27%), or had other educational objectives (36%).

 

Finally, enrollment changes by subject area were analyzed.  Only subject areas with 100 or more enrollments were included in the analysis.  The top ten subject areas at Mesa College with the largest change in student enrollment from fall 2001 to fall 2002 were: (1) Chicano studies, (2) health information technology, (3) black studies, (4) medical assisting, (5) real estate, (6) education, (7) water, (8) marketing, (9) health education, and (10) building construction technology. 

 

In summary, analysis of the fall 2002 enrollment (as of census) at Mesa College showed a 9% increase in student enrollment from the previous fall semester (fall 2001).  In addition, the results showed small proportional increases of students who were Latino and younger (age 18-29).  Otherwise, the general characteristic of the student population at Mesa College did not change significantly.  In terms of the fall-to-fall persistence of first-time freshmen, over half persisted from fall 2001 to fall 2002.  Persistence rates were higher for first-time freshmen who intended to transfer or were undecided about their educational goals.

Note: Supporting data available upon request.

 

 

 

 



[1] The service areas for the three colleges are defined by their surrounding zip codes and reflect the general community served by the college.