The university has confirmed a shortfall of 89 undergraduate students, compared to fall 2010.
Last week, the T&C reported that according to Rebecca Vazquez-Skillings, vice president for business affairs, the shortage was in the range of 60 students.
The official number of 89 was reported at Monday’s University Summit and is a combination of 39 full-time and 50 part-time undergraduates.
Vazquez-Skillings said a decline in adult part-time undergraduates, a key revenue driver, was unexpected and is still being investigated.
Part-time undergraduates bring in $3,015,000, or 5 percent of the university’s estimated revenue of $59,724,774 for the 2012 fiscal year, according to the budget presentation.
“For me, that was the most unexpected,” Vazquez-Skillings said.
Since the loss in enrollment exceeded the 27 that was planned for, the university must look at who these students are and what areas it needs to address, according to Vazquez-Skillings.
She urged faculty members to not feel alarmed by a decrease in numbers.
“(We’re) not ready to sound any alarms in terms of enrollment,” she said.
An area in which a loss was expected is the retention of traditional undergraduates and transfer students.
There was also an unexpected increase in students in residential housing.
Weighing the cost of being a student
