The Minnesota State system of public universities and community colleges has lost nearly 20,000 students over the past two years, a troubling sign that the pandemic is exacerbating an enrollment decline that has spanned the past decade.
Total enrollment in the Minnesota State system has decreased about 11% since fall 2019, from nearly 172,000 students to about 153,000, according to enrollment head count data. Enrollment fell 6% this fall, surpassing the 5% drop that occurred last year when colleges held more classes online during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the few years before the pandemic, system enrollment had been decreasing by just under 2% annually.
"The pandemic continues to have a significant impact on our financials and enrollment," Bill Maki, Minnesota State's vice chancellor for finance and facilities, told the system's board of trustees Tuesday.
By comparison, enrollment at the University of Minnesota's five campuses remained largely stable this fall. The flagship Twin Cities campus landed one of its largest freshman classes in decades.
Minnesota State is the third-largest state college system in the country with 30 community colleges and seven universities. The system has long played a key role in developing Minnesota's workforce.
A decade ago, there were 158,000 full-time students in the system. This fall, the number of full-time students attending Minnesota State institutions had fallen to about 108,000.
Minnesota State administrators said the 6% enrollment decline this fall was worse than anticipated and likely due to the more contagious delta variant causing a surge in new COVID-19 cases right before the semester began.
