UT-Austin sets enrollment records, sees increases in underrepresented populations

The University of Texas at Austin set record enrollment with 52,384 students for the fall 2022 semester, welcoming the most ever first-year undergraduates and counting its highest overall student population. The flagship’s growth also comes with gains in its historically underrepresented student populations: More Black and Hispanic students enrolled than last year. And more than 10 years after launching a goal to drastically increase four-year graduation rates, 73.5 percent of students in 2022 succeeded in the effort, up from 52.2 percent in 2012, according to figures released by the university Thursday.

“Year after year, increasingly more of the most outstanding students from across Texas and beyond want to enroll at our world-class university,” UT-Austin President Jay Hartzell said Thursday. “Improved graduation rates reduce students’ expenses and allow them to generate income sooner, while also expanding opportunities for incoming students who seek the rigorous education and vibrant college experience that UT offers.” UT-Austin this fall enrolled 9,109 first-time, first-year undergraduates, up from 9,060 the previous year, according to data collected on the 12th class day. Enrollment also set a new high with 52,384 students, up from 52,261 in 2002. Black, Hispanic, American Indian or Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander students now make up 33.6 percent of the undergraduate population and 30.3 percent of the entire university population, according to the data.