Bucking national trend, SIUE reports increased fall semester enrollment

For the first time in four years, enrollment at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville increased this semester.

A total of 12,813 students are enrolled at SIUE, which accounts for a 7.7% increase since last fall, according to university figures released on Wednesday .

“The numbers tell us that the value proposition of a high quality, affordable college degree still has meaning for students,” said SIUE Chancellor James Minor in a statement. “We now have the extraordinary opportunity to serve them.”

The reversal in enrollment at the Metro East university means SIUE has bucked a national trend , where institutions of higher education have reported shrinking enrollment figures since the early 2010s.

SIUE’s total enrollment peaked in 2016 at 14,265. In all but 2021, enrollment ha