LARAMIE (WNE) — Enhanced efforts to recruit and retain students have led to a 1.4% increase in the University of Wyoming’s spring semester enrollment compared to last year.

The 10,388 students enrolled on the 15th day of classes are up from 10,246 at the same time last year, reflecting increases in first-time (61.8%) and transfer (1.4%) students enrolling at the midpoint of the academic year, according to a news release. 

Those new enrollments, combined with a fall-to-spring first-time retention rate exceeding 93%, have produced UW’s first year-over-year overall enrollment increase since before the COVID pandemic.

“We are pleased that we have largely maintained the solid number of students enrolled in the fall semester, while adding some new faces who arrived for the spring semester,” said Kyle Moore, UW’s vice provost for enrollment management, in the release. “More and more students are discovering the incredible value of a UW education, including many hands-on learning opportunities and experiences that lead to well-paying jobs and satisfying careers.” 

The increase in new enrollments this spring is reflected in all three categories of first-time undergraduate students, transfer students and graduate students (2.9% rise). While Wyoming residents (up 3.4%) are responsible for the bulk of the overall enrollment increase, the biggest share of undergraduates enrolling for the first time this spring came from out of state.

In recent years, as UW’s in-state student enrollment has started to rebound from the pandemic, nonresident student numbers have declined. The university has taken a number of steps to reverse that trend, including enhanced marketing and recruitment efforts in states including Colorado, Texas, California, Illinois, Arizona and Washington.