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Guilford Enjoys Highest Enrollme
James E. Tatum
Editor-in-Chief
This is the first in a series of
articles about the increasing enroll
ment at Guilford College and its impli
cations for the institution and the
Guilford community. This article fo
cuses on the Office of Enrollment, in
particular the office of Admission.
Guilford College has the highest
enrollment it has seen in years.
Currently, the college is enjoying
the largest enrollment for a spring se
mester, 1,778 students, including tradi
tional age, CCE, and Early College, in the
institution's history
Applications are also up, with the
college receiving a record total of 1,536
from both first-year and transfer appli
cants as of late February
College officials expect that the
college will surpass its all-time enroll
ment record of 1,862 students, set in
1965, when the incoming first-year class
arrives this fall.
"Interest in Guilford College is at
an all-time high," said Randy Doss, vice
president for enrollment and campus life.
"Prospective students are making the
judgment that Guilford not only offers a
great academic environment but can also
be life-changing. We've challenged pro
spective students to 'be the change they
wish to see in the world' and to be willing
to be challenged in every way They are
obviously seeking this kind of experi
ence."
Why is enrollment up at Guil
ford? Why are more students ap
plying than in previous years, and
what if anything is the college do
ing differently to attract them?
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Courtesy of the First Year Center
The Class 0f2006, which began the academic year with 305 students, is part of the record spring-semester
enrollment of 1,778 students, including Early College, Traditional, and CCE. Guilford anticipates enrolling
2,000 students next fall, which would break the all-time enrollment record of 1,862 students set in 1965.
Where are these new students com
ing from, and in what age group, tra
ditional, CCE, or early college, are
they most enrolling? Will the college
continue to enroll more and more
students every year, or is there an
ultimate goal, a cutoff point?
For answers to these questions,
the Office of Enrollment is a good point
of origin.
Enrollment: Where It All Begins
This year marks the forth enroll
ment cycle under the current Vice Presi
dent for Enrollment, Randy Doss.
After the senior class, which was
recruited by then-Dean of Admission Al
Newell, graduates in May, the student
body will be made up entirely of classes
that arrived under Doss' tenure.
"The purpose of enrollment is
to support the educational experi
ence," Doss said. "And that educa
tional experience takes place in the
classroom and it takes place out of
the classroom."
"We have to build an enrollment
sufficient for our needs and our wants.
Frankly, we have to work right now on
our needs."
April 11, 2003
Doss notes that the economic
climate over the last three years has
led to a lower return on the college's
endowment than originally projected,
a problem Doss says is faced by other
colleges as well. This, in turn, has
forced the college to rely more heavily
on tuition rates as a source of income.
"How you maintain your edu
cational enterprise in an era of de
clining returns on investments is an
unbelievable challenge," Doss said.
"The bigger an endowment
you have, the less tuition driven you
have to be."
Page 12
Doss notes t
students suggest ft
a slightly larger scl
A 1999 surve
the research firm (
Associates found tl
dents say they are
college of 1500 sti
"The definit
small is so superfit
Doss notes that G
are spread amo
groups, Early Colle
and CCE, and also
residential and off-c
In designating a t
says Guilford will a
cide how that size
into the different
age brackets.
"What kind
of student-faculty
ratio do we want
during the day?"
Doss said. "What
kind of student
faculty ratio do we
want during the
night? How many
full-time people do
we want during
the day? Is that the
same percentage
we want during
the night?
"[These
are] the kind of is
sues that budget
committees are
discussing and
trying to work
through."