Scholarship opportunities and recruitment efforts boost enrollment at UNM

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The pack is getting bigger at the University of New Mexico. UNM officials say more than 22,000 students are enrolled.

UNM has also seen a 12% increase in international exchange students following the pandemic.

UNM Director of Admissions Matthew Hulett says the boost in enrollment is due to recruitment and scholarship opportunities.

“Our first-year student class, our freshman class, is also up about 3%, which puts it on course to be one of our largest freshman classes ever,” Hulett said. “We are very excited about the enrollment increases – lots of people have been working very hard to recruit, enroll, and retain those students.

University-wide enrollment is at 22,852 students, but it’s first-time Lobos that are getting a lot of recognition. Out of the entire freshman class, nearly 82% are from New Mexico, almost 17% are from out-of-state, and 1.2% are international students.

Hulett says these numbers speak to the importance of scholarships.

“We also have to recognize the importance of New Mexico’s Lottery and Opportunity Scholarships that have made college attendance so much more affordable for New Mexico’s families and, I think, plays a strong role in increased enrollment here at UNM,” Hulett said.

With the second year of record-breaking enrollment under their belt, they don’t plan to stop recruitment efforts anytime soon.

“The plan is to keep doing what we are doing, keep communicating with New Mexico’s families about these wonderful opportunities, to let our legislators and our governor know how important these programs are to New Mexico’s families and their students to pursue their education,” Hulett said.

KOB 4 also reached out to Central New Mexico Community College in Albuquerque about their enrollment. In a statement, they say enrollment has increased by 1%, and “the increase can be attributed to continued collaboration between CNM’s Enrollment Management and Student Success Division and the Academic Affairs Division to remove barriers.”

As for UNM, these are the unofficial numbers. They are going to submit the final count at the end of this month.