CSUN Enrollment Tops 29,000 for 4% Rise

Student enrollment at Cal State Northridge grew to more than 29,000 this year, a 4% increase that compares with a 2.4% average increase at CSU campuses statewide.

With 1,119 additional students, the Northridge campus posted the third-largest increase in the 22-campus Cal State University system, behind Sacramento and Fullerton.

Student enrollment was on the decline in the early 1990s, falling to a low of 24,310 in 1994, following the devastating Northridge earthquake.

“There have been increases in the birth rate that we have begun to see over the past few years,” said Margaret Fieweger, CSUN’s associate vice president for undergraduate studies. “And we’ve had a lot of different strategies going to address post-earthquake growth, making sure we plan for it.”

For instance, the university has shifted funding into introductory computer and math classes as registrations became bottlenecked in those courses, she said.

Northridge students this fall returned to a campus that has been rebuilt from the ground up since the quake, which left many buildings in shambles. New wings of the library, a Krispy Kreme Cyber Cafe and a new president were added this fall.

As the semester goes on, new technology and media buildings are expected to replace the trailers and construction equipment that have been part of the school’s profile since 1994.

“That’s part of the planned growth,” Fieweger said.

She said during rapid enrollment growth in the past, students would sometimes have to sit on the floor in classrooms because there were no seats available. Administrators now work to ensure there are adequate facilities to meet growing numbers, she added.

Statewide, CSU enrollment grew by 8,533 students, or 2.4%, to 368,252 students. The total nears the record-high 369,053 in 1990.

CSU’s enrollment, which has risen for six consecutive years, is expected to continue to swell as the children of baby boomers enter college. The California Post Secondary Education Commission estimates enrollment will expand from about 350,000 in 1998 to more than 479,000 in 2010, a 37% increase.

With 29,066 students, Northridge is the third-largest campus in the CSU system, following San Diego State with 31,609 students and Long Beach with 30,920.