The University of North Texas –- like the region it is named for -– is growing quickly.
There are now 39,330 UNT undergraduate and graduate students enrolled, which is the most ever. That enrollment figure represents a 3% increase from the 2018-2019 academic year, according to figures from the university.
In addition to overall enrollment being up, UNT also touts its largest-ever freshman class this fall. A record 5,522 freshman are on campus, which is an increase of 15.3% in "first time college students at the university," according to a UNT news release.
And the University of North Texas is also retaining more of its students than ever before. This fall nearly 80% of last year’s freshman class returned to UNT, according to enrollment data, which is an increase of 1.6% over the fall of 2018.
"When you can keep a student on campus, move them through and graduate them faster, get them into the job market and limit their debt you are doing the job that higher education is supposed to do," said UNT President Neal Smatresk.
If there is any drawback to the continued growth on campus, perhaps it comes with accommodating all of the people who want to live there.
The university "overbooked" its dormitories for the fall semester, according to Smatresk, which forced UNT to offer buyouts to some returning sophomores in an attempt to entice them to leave the dorm and clear out space for incoming freshmen.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
In addition, some formerly-single occupancy rooms are now acting as double occupancy rooms, including some resident advisors being forced to take on freshman roommates, according to a report in the student-run newspaper North Texas Daily.
"Of course [increased enrollment] leads to a little bit of growing pains, but now we have to find clever and creative ways to make sure that we can continue to accommodate the students who come here," Smatresk said.
