Students gather on the University Center mall during Activity Fair Day on Aug. 27. There is a 2.6% annual increase for undergrad and graduate enrollment this fall.
File photo / Elvis Martinez-Cartagena
A group of UTA leaders spent 18 months fine-tuning strategies to achieve the largest freshman class in university history.
Local recruitment, financial aid, housing and academic success factor into their planning. They also keep a close eye on policies impacting international and undocumented students.
Managing enrollment isn’t just about number crunching. It’s a job focused on looking years ahead while asking current students what works. However, the task is daunting as federal officials change rules affecting higher education.
“We cannot do what we do alone,” said Luisa Havens Gerardo, vice president for the Division of Enrollment Management.
UTA has 42,710 undergrad and graduate students this fall, a 2.6% annual increase. The university set a new record for the largest freshman class in its history — almost two-thirds of whom come from within about 40 miles — and also achieved a first-year retention rate of more than 78%.
The strategies
UTA doesn’t just strategize around high school graduates for enrollment.
Havens Gerardo said her team pays attention to the number of eighth graders entering high school to prepare for enrollment fluctuations. Also, fewer traditional students may mean attracting adults to complete their college degrees.
It’s all about opportunity, she said.
One of UTA’s selling points is its Research 1 designation from the Carnegie Classifications of Institutions of Higher Education recognizing the highest level of research activity, Havens Gerardo said.
Biomedical engineering freshman Anushka Mahat, an international student from Nepal, said she transferred from the University of Idaho to UTA because her major wasn’t offered there. So far, she is pleased with UTA’s tuition and student club culture.
“The place itself, it’s very diverse,” Mahat said. “Idaho is very quiet place, and this is kind of my vibe.”
More than a third of UTA’s students are Hispanic, followed by white, Black and Asian students.
To improve retention, UTA focuses on the diverse needs of its students, monitoring grades and providing targeted academic support, said Ashley Purgason, vice provost for the Division of Student Success.
“Sometimes it might mean that the student wants to consider studying something different,” she said. “And sometimes it might mean that they just need a little bit of guidance on how to navigate this degree plan they’re in.”
The university also provides help around financial support. UTA recently marketed a new program called Financially Fit to students and families in both English and Spanish, focusing on payment plans, housing and budgeting tuition and fees, said Ehren Wixson, assistant vice president of the Division of Business Affairs.
Funding challenges
UTA expanded its Blaze Forward program to cover full tuition and mandatory fees for families earning up to $100,000, helping 60% of undergraduate students.
Biology junior Jenny Fernandez said most of her tuition is covered by grants and outside scholarships. She chose UTA because of its proximity to her family.
“UTA has the classes I need for what I want to pursue later in life, which is something in the dental field,” Fernandez said.
The UT System’s Promise Plus program provided UTA about $11 million for the Blaze Forward program, which only covered about 900 students, said Karen Krause, executive director of financial aid, scholarships and veterans benefits processing. Other sources of funding came from grants and other resources.
Decline in international, undocumented students
In June, Texas ended a law allowing undocumented students to receive in-state tuition. As the lawsuit happened in the summer, UTA was forced to quickly navigate the challenges of supporting impacted students but ultimately didn’t have enough time to guide them toward outside scholarships or to plan other assistance, Krause said.
“We’ve done the very best we can,” she said.
The university enrolled more than 900 fewer international students, going from 5,569 last fall to 4,667 this semester. While international students are eligible for external scholarships at UTA, they typically pay out-of-state or nonresident tuition and fees — a large source of income for the university.
Recent moves from the Trump administration to revoke visas, announce a travel ban and halt scheduling for new visa interviews have led to a nationwide decline in the number of prospective students in the U.S.
“We really cannot right now expect to just have exactly the same goal around international students,” Havens Gerardo said.
The university is looking to mitigate the issue through outreach to neighboring states, she said, stating that Oklahoma is an important market to entice students. Officials have also looked at California, which is reaching capacity and cannot accommodate more students.
“These strategies are long-term strategies, not something that you can say, ‘Oh, we’re going to replace every international students that don’t come next year,’” Havens Gerardo said.
Looking ahead
UTA is aware of the incoming challenges as it looks five years ahead, Havens Gerardo said.
She said she has been in enrollment management long enough to know the ebbs and flows of higher education, including for international students.
“The international student market may get better in two to three years, so you cannot abandon totally a strategy,” Havens Gerardo said. “You still have to have a strategy of maintaining relationships, in maintaining presence, in having a strategy of at least brand recognition in certain areas.”
For Krause, the changes are difficult to navigate until they happen.
She already sees some issues bubbling. New federal Pell grant requirements will lead to fewer recipients. Krause is also bracing for changes to loan programs.
Just because the fall enrollment data is finalized does not mean Krause’s work in supporting students is anywhere near done.
The number next to Krause’s inbox glared back at her in blue bold font: 1,200.
That’s the number of emails her team had in the past week. Each needed a clear, careful and accurate response. “We want to be transparent with students,” Krause said.
By the middle of the following week, she and her team had lowered the backlog of emails to almost 700.
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