The third-largest incoming freshman class arrived at Eastern Michigan University this week.
An expected 2,600 new freshmen start at the university Wednesday. Academically, these students are some of the best-prepared in Eastern Michigan University history.
This year’s freshman class includes a record number of students in EMU’s Honors College with more than 500 freshman students submitting applications.
The GPA of entering EMU freshman has risen over the past five years from a 3.05 GPA, on a scale of 4.0, in the fall of 2010 to 3.27 GPA for the incoming class of 2014. A higher percentage of these students also hold a GPA between 3.5 and 4.0.
The EMU Honors College has doubled in size since 2011. The department anticipates a total of approximately 1,400 students enrolled in the program in 2014.
Rebecca Sipe said that bringing in this many more honors students will also help other non-honors students in need of academic guidance. Honors College students receive advisement though the college, which will free up resources outside the department.
Some of the enrollment growth is credited to the limiting of tuition increases; something Eastern has led the state in for almost six years. Eastern has also used capital reinvestment in housing and classroom technology updates.
The housing renovations also contribute to the increased number of students living on campus, with more than 3,700 expected to live on campus this fall.
Eastern’s new Science Complex has also drawn interest from potential students on campus tours. The complex, completed in 2012 at a cost of $90 million, will be home to a new undergraduate program in public health that is drawing many new students. The
Public Health degree was created in response to student demand and the needs of the job market.
“Our recent investment in key academic and student facilities, excellent faculty, the ability of our gradates to find good jobs in their field of study, and increased financial aid while setting the pace for tuition restraint in Michigan is being recognized by more students and their families,” President Susan Martin said in a press release.
