Fullerton : Cal State Campus Reports Highest Enrollment Ever

Cal State Fullerton this spring has more students than ever before in the university’s 26-year history, officials said Monday.

Mildred H. Scott, acting dean of admissions and records, said 22,554 students are enrolled this spring. She said the enrollment is a gain of 517 from a year ago and 215 more than the previous all-time spring enrollment figure set in 1982.

The record-breaking enrollment at Cal State Fullerton came despite decreasing numbers of high school graduates in Orange County--a decrease that has already been reflected in a downturn the past two years in community college enrollments.

Cal State Fullerton’s boom also came despite enrollment fees that are almost seven times higher than community colleges. The current enrollment fees at Cal State Fullerton are $333.50 a semester, compared with $50 a semester at community colleges.

Scott said that most of the gain in CSUF’s spring semester this year reflects higher retention of upperclassmen. There are 7,737 seniors this spring, she said, compared with 7,149 last spring semester. There are also more junior and sophomore students at the university, she said.

Last fall, Cal State Fullerton closed several courses to enrollment in an effort to keep growth to manageable levels. Even so, the university this year has 461 more “full-time equivalent” students--students taking 15 units of course work--than state funding in the current budget provides.