UW Tacoma student numbers continue upward climb

Students turned out in record numbers again at the traditional start of the school year at UW Tacoma. This autumn, enrollment rose by almost 10 percent over 2010, with a new headcount of 3,662 students, compared to last year’s headcount of 3,331.

The enrollment increase followed a 23 percent increase in freshman applications and a 16 percent increase in transfer applications.

The freshman class grew by 12 percent over last autumn, and the number of students transferring from community colleges or other universities rose by 16 percent over last year, said Derek Levy, associate vice chancellor for Enrollment Services.

“We are pleased to see more transfer and freshman applicants selecting UW Tacoma as a destination,” he said. “Within our overall enrollment, we’ve also noted a continuing trend toward more students attending full time.”

For autumn quarter, 75 percent of students enrolled full time, an increase of about 3 percentage points over 2010.

Demographics from this autumn’s students

• 3,111 (85 percent) undergraduate students
• 551 (15 percent) grad students
• 59 percent women
• 41 percent men
• 61 percent reside in Pierce County
• 34 percent identified themselves as African American, Native American, Asian American, Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, and/or Hispanic/Latino