Enrollment & Retention Management Update - October 2023

The Enrollment & Retention Management Division has launched a new website.  This site has many updated links and includes a current version of the ERM Strategic Plan, as well as an updated Admissions Recruitment Plan.

Fall 2023 final enrollment numbers 11% increase

For the fourth semester in a row, census numbers show that more students are attending the University of Illinois Springfield. After the first 10 days of classes, a total of 4,661 students are enrolled for Fall Semester 2023, an increase of 11% from 4,198 students in fall 2022. 

There are 259 new incoming freshmen students enrolled at UIS this semester, an almost 6% increase from 245 students in fall 2022. The number of students transferring to UIS also increased by almost 3% with 448 students enrolled. The total number of undergraduate students fell slightly from 2,393 in fall 2022 to 2,342 students in fall 2023.

The number of graduate students taking classes at UIS increased by 28% this semester with 2,319 students enrolled compared to 1,805 in fall 2022. There are 1,400 domestic students enrolled in graduate programs at UIS this semester and 919 international students. 

Online learning continues to grow at UIS with 1,901 online majors in fall 2023, up from 1,597 students (a 19% increase) in fall 2022. More than 80% of all UIS students take at least one course online. UIS online students reside in approximately 45 states, 74 counties in Illinois and 19 foreign countries. 

Illinois residents account for 68% of the students attending UIS this semester. There are 3,096 students from Illinois enrolled this semester, up from 2,995 students in fall 2022. A total of 844 students are living in residential facilities on campus this semester.

UIS saw an increase in the number of students from all demographics taking classes this fall. There are 1,005 international students enrolled at UIS (22% of the student body), compared to 645 in fall 2022. Black or African American students make up about 11% of the total UIS population, followed by Hispanic students at 8% and Asian students at 4%.

Office of Admissions Processing

Admissions Processing staff are receiving, processing, and evaluating Spring, Summer, and Fall 2024 applications. As the start of the Second-Half part of term approaches, we’re prioritizing the processing of all Fall 2023 Second-Half applications.  We continue to cross-train staff, as well as reviewing and updating our procedures and email templates. We recently celebrated our Star Power with Carol Marshall being selected as September’s Employee of the Month. Carol is a valuable member of the UIS community and Admissions Processing. If you weren’t able to attend the party, please stop by and congratulate her. EOM committee member, Joy Roberts, asked us to encourage others to take the time to nominate deserving team members.

In the last few weeks, the Admissions Processing team has worked with Records and Registration to complete a number of course articulation-related projects to better assist our transfer student population.  A team continues to participate in the National Association of System Heads project with the UI System office to ensure better transfer experiences for students.

Office of Admissions Recruitment

The Fall 2024 recruitment cycle is underway!

Admissions Recruiting has been busy preparing for fall travel. We have two new admission counselors that joined us recently, Kyle Gebeck and Anne Shaff. Both are much welcomed, as we have 652 off-campus events we plan to attend and we are still confirming high school and community college visits. In addition to our daily campus information sessions and tours, group visits to UIS have become popular with many schools and organizations that support youth. We hosted several groups over the summer and have a dozen with confirmed visits planned for this fall.

We also have a new initiative to remove the barrier of completing an application fee waiver. Sometimes counselors are not easy to access at all our schools and sometimes it is embarrassing to ask for a fee waiver due to financial need. UIS has started automatically waiving application fees for students from our neediest schools in Illinois. The students no longer need to complete a form asking for a fee waiver. We are excited to remove this barrier and make it easier for students from all backgrounds to complete our application for admission.

Recruiters are visiting the two out of state locations where we will be able to charge in state tuition beginning in Fall 2024.  The locations are in the St. Louis MO area and the Quad City Area in Iowa.

Office of Financial Aid

2024-25 Scholarships and Aid Programs

Admissions and Financial Aid recently contracted with a third-party consultant to complete a financial aid leveraging and optimization project. The goal of this is to help us increase enrollment while also increasing net tuition revenue for undergraduate students. As a result of the data analysis, best practice recommendations, and modeling work completed by the consultant, the following changes are being implemented for new, incoming first-year and transfer students starting in Fall 2024: 

UIS is introducing a Prairie Promise for first-year undergraduate Illinois resident students. The Promise will cover tuition and mandatory fees with MAP grant, AIM HIGH, UIS merit and/or need-based aid. Pell grants, donor scholarships and any other gift aid will be in addition to the Promise.  Prairie Promise student eligibility:

• be an Illinois resident
• enroll as a first-time, first-year undergraduate student at UIS
• maintain full-time enrollment
• meet IL MAP Grant eligibility
• be enrolled in an on-campus academic program

A new first -year scholarship program, Star Scholar Award will be replacing the current Lincoln Scholarships. The minimum amount is now $2,000 instead of $1,000/year and the top award is reduced from $8,000 to $7,000/year. This is geared to provide more funds to more of the middle range students. Cap Honor scholarships will be an additional $1,000 added to the Star Scholar, rather than an extra $2,000/year.

AIM High funds will be separated from our first year and transfer scholarships and awarded in addition to merit scholarships for those who qualify.  The President’s Award Program (PAP) scholarships will no longer be stacked.PAP will be awarded during packaging rather than upon admission. It will allow us to use the awards as a yield tool for underrepresented students from rural areas, financially needy families, and/or racial and ethnic minorities.  The Out of State Scholarship remains unchanged.  Continuing students under current scholarship programs will continue to receive their scholarships and will not be eligible for the new programs.  Please visit the Financial Aid Website Financial Aid website for more information and details.

FAFSA Simplification

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for 2024-25 is being revitalized, as a result of the FAFSA Simplification Act. The application will look different and should be an easier process for most applicants. However, the changes do not come without some challenges. The FAFSA will not be available on October 1st this year, and will instead be released sometime in December 2023, for the 2024-25 aid year. Students may still complete the 2023-24 FAFSA for the current aid year. The FAFSA formula is changing with the Student Aid Index (SAI) replacing the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) as well as Pell Grant eligibility, among other items. This will alter the financial aid awarding timeline significantly. We will continue to provide updates as more information is available. In addition, the Self-Service portal will be revamped and updated in the late winter. Electronic financial aid notifications will be impacted by this update.

Below are resources with more information about FAFSA Simplification:

• UIS FAFSA Simplification 
• Fact Sheet
• FAFSA Simplification Summary
• National College Attainment Network FAFSA Resources

Informational Zoom Meeting

Financial Aid will host an informational Zoom meeting for interested campus faculty and staff if you have any questions or would like to hear more information about the FAFSA Simplification or new scholarship programs on Tuesday, November 7 from 9:00 - 10:00 am. The Zoom link is: Information Session Zoom Link.

Office of Records and Registration

New Registrar

Lea Smith began as Registrar on July 16. She brings a wealth of experience to her role as a higher education professional, drawing from her multifaceted background in retail management, team leadership, customer service, and operational efficiency. Her career at UIS began in the Fall of 2018 with Admissions, then she transitioned to Records and Registration, directly involved in application processing, document imaging, and tuition and fees to her current role as the Director of Records and Registration and Registrar. Lea is a proud University of Illinois Springfield alumna, earning her Bachelor of Business Administration degree in 2014 and, more recently, her Master of Business Administration degree in 2023. She is also a certified SHRM Veterans at Work professional, having completed her certification in 2018 through the Society for Human Resource Management and PsychArmor Institute, and earned a Human Resource Management Graduate Certificate in 2019.

Miscellaneous Updates

The Office of Records and Registration (also known as the Office of the Registrar) consists of a number of areas responsible for a variety of duties.  Listed below are a few updates from the various subunits:

• Catalog: The 2023-24 UIS Catalog now includes the addendum and is available at Catalog
• Degree Audits: Working with Admissions Processing, efforts are being made to improve course-to-course articulations and transferability for incoming students.
• Grading/Records: Mid-term and First-half grading for the Fall 2023 semester will begin in the next few weeks, with the deadline to have all grades submitted electronically by Noon on Wednesday, October 25.
• Registration: Registration for Spring 2024 courses begins in November. Please encourage students to register as soon as possible before classes fill up or get canceled due to a lack of enrollment.
• Tuition/Fees: Tuition, fee, and assessment amounts for Spring 2024 are available on the Tuition and Fee website (https://www.uis.edu/registrar/tuition-fees) The tuition calculator is being revamped and scheduled to go live in 2024.
• Graduation: Students graduating in Fall 2023 should submit an online graduation application via Student Self-Service by October 2, 2023.

Stop by the UHB Admissions Lobby anytime. Contact us at ENROLLMGMT@uis.edu.