Enrollment Highlights
The total number of students is only one piece of the enrollment picture—who we serve is just as important as how many we serve. This year we saw the percentage of first-generation students increase to 42% of new student enrollments, up from 40% last year, and our Pell grant recipients climbed to 39% of our new student population, compared with 37% last year. We also saw increases in new students from our local area (up by 11% or 45 students) and in the percentage of new students identifying as American Indian (2% this fall, compared with 1% last fall). 

We also saw a slight increase in full-time, in-state student enrollment, which is the measure that matters most in our drive to meet state-funded enrollment targets. In addition, our one-year retention rate has ticked upward slightly to 76% for the Fall 2023 First Time, Full-Time student cohort, compared to last year’s finalized rate of 75.6%.  I encourage you to review both the New Student semester snapshot and the All Student semester snapshot. 

We know over the last two years, a historic number of students applied to Cal Poly Humboldt. In fact, more than 21,400 students applied for Fall 2024.  

 This year, the University required an enrollment deposit, providing a baseline for clearer, more reliable enrollment data. What we found is that while 12% of admitted students enrolled, 94.4% of admitted students who made an enrollment deposit attended Humboldt, up from 87.7% who confirmed last year. That means only 5.6% of deposited students did not enroll—well below the industry target of 10% or less. This was one of the few summers on record that we continued to grow in total confirmations from June to August, instead of experiencing a significant loss of previously committed students. With deposit processes in place, 2024 now becomes a strong baseline for predicting how many future students will enroll.

 The same stabilization was reflected in our housing occupancy, due to a re-introduced housing application fee. In recent years, as much as 20% of students who signed a housing contract never moved into housing. This year, that was reduced to less than 10%, and more students are living in campus housing. Campus housing occupancy was 95% in early September, up 12% from last September’s 83%.

Strategic Efforts Are Working
We know from new data tracking and analysis efforts that many of our enrollment strategies are working—for example: 

• 62% of our Spring Preview attendees enrolled this fall, making it the most impactful conversion event our campus hosts.

• EMSS partnered with academic departments for both call campaigns and postcard campaigns to admitted students. When looking at the data from the campaigns independently, students who spoke with a departmental contact on the phone had 105% higher odds of enrolling. Additionally, students who received a handwritten postcard had 120% higher odds of enrolling. When looking at all the campaigns together, a direct phone call had the most significant result. 

All of the data makes it clear there is substantial interest in Cal Poly Humboldt, with growing application volume and students who are willing to commit to our campus. Based on the data insights from this year, our focus in the coming cycle will be two-fold: 1) refine our outreach and application efforts to ensure those applying are serious about our campus and 2) expand yield activities that drive more students from the admitted to deposited categories. The University will continue pushing toward its polytechnic transformation goals that called for Fall 2025 enrollment to rise above 8,000. While our growth trajectory is slower than what the University initially targeted when planning for our polytechnic designation began, it is steady and achievable, and the future in which we welcome 12,000 students to our online and in-person classes is indeed achievable. The enrollment landscape has shifted greatly in recent years,  and our continued growth is a major win for this campus.

What Comes Next?
The Enrollment Management team is already communicating with prospective students, attending college fairs, making high school and community college visits, and building relationships in the communities they serve in support of these efforts—and the Fall 2025 application, which opened Oct. 1. We are refining plans for specialty visits to campus, application and admitted student workshops, participation in a CSU direct admissions program in Southern California, and the expansion of the Humboldt First initiative. We are also shifting marketing and outreach efforts to capitalize on peer competitor data and begin expanding out-of-state recruitment as we continue to hone our California strategies. We continue admissions and enrollment process improvements that make it easier for students to apply and make it through the enrollment steps.

 EMSS has a new partnership with a company helping to identify new markets, expand enrollment communications, and build predictive scoring that allows us to concentrate on those students who most need intervention in order to encourage their enrollment. All of these touchpoints help ensure that a student who applies and is admitted feels strongly connected to our campus and is more likely to deposit and ultimately register.

As I did last year, I invite you to join  us in these efforts, to ensure this strategic work is successful. A few examples of what you can do:

• Talk to a high school sophomore or junior about Cal Poly Humboldt. Tell them why you love it and think they would too – then encourage them to fill out our online inquiry form, so we can begin building an early relationship with them and their family. If you know a high school senior who is still deciding, talk to them as well!

• Help with direct recruitment efforts. Have an idea about a school or event you could visit to expand interest in your academic program? We may be able to help with funding and special support! Faculty can fill out the recruitment travel form to request funding. Contact Admissions Director Aolany Navas at amn98@humboldt.edu for more information.

• Inspire admitted students to enroll. We partner with departments willing to participate in call and postcard campaigns designed to impact final college decision making for prospective students. If you want to help, contact Associate Director of Strategic Communications Chelsea Mooney at cmm246@humboldt.edu.

• Learn more about our student population. How well do you know Cal Poly Humboldt students? Attend a fun and interactive presentation about Cal Poly Humboldt enrollment data on Monday, Nov. 18, from 1:00 – 2:30 pm in Goodwin Forum. The presentation is a collaboration between the President's Office, Enrollment Management & Student Success, and Academic Affairs ITS Institutional Research, Analytics, and Reporting. RSVP here.

 I am proud of the steady growth our campus has seen and the hard work that has made it possible. The next step is for us all to increase our collaborative work, united in efforts to expand access to a polytechnic education at Cal Poly Humboldt. I remain optimistic about the future, and I am grateful for each of you and the passion you bring to creating opportunities for all students. 

Sincerely, 

Chrissy Holliday
Vice President for Enrollment Management & Student Success