This year, enrollment of incoming freshmen is the lowest it’s been in the last 10 years.

Gary Swegan, director of undergraduate admissions, said freshmen enrollment has been dropping since 2007.

Before then, from about 1999 to 2006, enrollment experienced a surge when the average number of incoming freshmen hovered around 3,650.

Swegan said since 2007, some University scholarships were revamped to benefit a wider range of students. Prior to the changes, more money went to fewer students, but now, less money is going to more students.

‘Changes surrounding aid and scholarships definitely cost us a few students,’ Swegan said.

Swegan also said the economic problems sweeping the country this year affected people’s decisions.

‘The impact the economy seemed to have on us was we had fewer applications for freshmen,’ Swegan said.

But while freshmen enrollment is down, transfer students are up from last year at 625 students enrolled as of Aug. 18.

Enrollment at Firelands campus has also increased this year.

Deb Divers, director of admissions at Firelands, said so far this year 406 freshmen have enrolled, along with 115 transfer students.

‘We’ve grown over 1,000 students in the last 10 years,’ Divers said.

In 1999, Divers said 259 freshmen and 75 transfer students enrolled. Overall, about 1,200 students were enrolled in 1999, she said.

This year, 2,432 students overall are registered for fall, which Divers said was up 133 from last year’s 2,299.

According to enrollment reports on the Firelands Web site, enrollment has been increasing overall since about 1998.

Divers said she thought more students were looking at Firelands as an option to start a new career, or to just save money.

‘The economy is really helping our enrollment,’ she said.

BY THE NUMBERS Fall enrollment of freshmen and transfer students over the past 10 years 1999 – 3556 freshmen, 606 transfer students 2000 – 3431 freshmen, 661 transfer students 2001 – 3636 freshmen, 667 transfer students 2002 – 3630 freshmen, 701 transfer students 2003 – 3557 freshmen, 647 transfer students 2004 – 3929 freshmen, 698 transfer students 2005 – 3654 freshmen, 675 transfer students 2006 – 3656 freshmen, 631 transfer students 2007 – 3295 freshmen, 682 transfer students 2008 – 3198 freshmen, 608 transfer students 2009 [as of Aug. 18] – 3150 freshmen, 625 transfer students