Record-breaking enrollments continue at UB

BUFFALO, N.Y. — For the third consecutive year, the University at Buffalo is enrolling a record-breaking freshman class and also expects to set records for undergraduate enrollment and total enrollment as well.

“The interest in attending UB has never been higher in the history of the institution,” said Lee Melvin, vice provost for enrollment management. “This is an exciting time at UB. Our academic units continue to introduce exciting educational opportunities piquing interest from applicants in New York State, throughout the U.S. and around the world.”

The university projects a freshman enrollment of 4,166; a total undergraduate enrollment of 20,071; and graduate student enrollment of 9,503, the highest in three years. UB’s total enrollment is estimated at 31,546, which includes enrollment in UB programs in Singapore and India, which are also experiencing increases. Final enrollment figures for the university will be reported at the end of the month.

With the record enrollments, UB continues to enroll a highly qualified, academically talented and diverse freshman class each year. The average SAT score for incoming freshman is 1,241, up 12 points over last year. The average high school GPA is 91.8.

Melvin said the university is very close to achieving its strategic enrollment goal, outlined by UB President Satish K. Tripathi in 2015, to grow the university’s total enrollment by 2,000 students.

Supported by a comprehensive brand strategy that emphasizes the unique experiences of attending the university, UB continues to receive more applications for admission than at any point in its history. This year the university received over 31,000 applications for freshman admission, a 10 percent increase from the previous year.

Over the past three years, UB has enhanced its admissions process by shifting to a holistic review that focuses on students’ individual talents and potential for academic success — taking into account much more than a student’s test scores, Melvin says. UB also has increased significantly the number of student recruitment events it holds both on and off campus. It measures the effectiveness of these events, which have attracted record numbers of students to open houses.

The result: an increasingly diverse, ambitious and intellectually curious student body.

UB also continues to rise in rankings of the nation’s best major research universities.  For the second successive year, UB achieved an all-time high ranking in the U.S. News & World Report “Best Colleges” issue, released this week.

UB is rated among the “top 50” public universities in the nation for the fifth straight year, improving three spots to No. 38. The university also achieved its highest rating ever among the best national universities in the country — public and private — at No. 89, up eight places from last year. Over the past 11 years, UB has risen 32 spots in the rankings.  

Additional information about UB’s projected 2018 enrollment:

• Approximately 46 percent of the incoming freshman class are international students or students of color.
• Transfer student enrollment is projected to be the highest in three years at 1,735 students.
• The number of underrepresented minority students who transferred to UB increased by 21 percent to 366 students.
• UB enrolled 5 percent more female students to its freshman class compared to the previous year.
• Enrollment of new graduate students this fall increased by 13 percent to 3,221.
• Enrollment in UB programs at the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) increased by nearly 100 to 1,545 students.