Back to school: Enrollment up at Maine community colleges, public universities
Photo / Courtesy of University of Maine System
The University of Maine System will start the new school year with its highest enrollment since 2021. At the University of Maine at Presque Isle, shown here, enrollment is up 74% to more than 1,800 students.
As they welcome students for the new academic year, Maine’s community colleges and public universities are both welcoming more of them.
As of Tuesday, early fall enrollment across the state’s seven community colleges was 16,670 students, compared to 15,334 students on the same date in 2023. The 9% increase puts the institutions on track for another historic high enrollment this year, the Maine Community College System said.
Enrollment has been boosted in part by the Free College Scholarship program covering 100% of tuition and mandatory fees for recent high school graduates.
Other factors include an increase in the number of high school students taking early college courses; colleges offering more night and weekend classes; and expanded capacity in popular academic programs that traditionally had waiting lists. Colleges are also seeing more returning and continuing students.
“All of these factors are playing a role in ongoing strong enrollment at the colleges, and we couldn’t be more pleased that we’re able to offer more low- or no-cost educational opportunities to more students,” said David Daigler, president of the Maine Community College System.
“It’s also a reminder that the clock is ticking," he added. “The high school class of 2025 is the last graduating class that qualifies for the Free College Scholarship, so we strongly urge all high school seniors to plan for a tuition-free college experience at Maine’s community colleges.”
Public universities
Enrollment is also up at the University of Maine System, which said it will start the academic year with the highest number of students since 2021.
Preliminary data released Tuesday show total enrollment is now nearing 24,400, a 5% jump over the same point last year, with 1,200 more students currently enrolled across Maine’s seven public universities. Credit hours, which drive revenue, are also up more than 5%.
The undergraduate population, which has been consistently declining each year for at least two decades, is on track to be higher than last year with nearly 19,400 enrollments.
Graduate enrollment has been steadily increasing as the system expands programming to meet employer demand for professionals with advanced degrees. This fall, the enrollment has climbed to more than 4,700 graduate students — a record.
Maine’s universities will also welcome the most transfer students in a decade, with nearly 2,300 undergraduate transfer students expected. That's 39% higher than last year.
Officials attributed the strong enrollment numbers to region-leading affordability and educational initiatives, including one that aims to help adults with some college complete their degree. In addition, one-quarter of undergraduate students enrolled this fall are age 25 and older, more than in the past.
“There is no better return on investment than a University of Maine System education,” said Dannel Malloy, chancellor of the University of Maine System. “Our strong enrollment numbers show that Mainers increasingly recognize the terrific value proposition of our public universities.”
Among individual institutions, enrollment is up 74% at the University of Maine at Presque Isle to more than 1,800 students, while the University of Maine at Farmington is experiencing its first enrollment increase since 2017.
And in Orono at the University of Maine, total enrollment is up to nearly 10,600. The incoming class of nearly 2,100 first-year students will be 13% bigger than last year's.
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