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FY11 Performance Dashboard - December 16, 2010
Educational Demand and Quality Details

 

Western Illinois University has enrollment goals of 12,500 students in Macomb and 3,000 students in the Quad Cities.

Macomb Campus Performance

In Macomb, enrollment was down 0.4%. However, enrollment is expected to increase in the years ahead. The campus attracted 122 more new freshmen and transfers than fall 2009, and net decreases in overall enrollment (2010 vs. 2009) are due to large graduating classes the past two years. Demand for the Macomb campus increased in fall 2010. Applications, acceptances, and enrollments of new freshmen and transfers all up from fall 2009, and the University continues to work with an enrollment consultant.

 

Macomb One-Year Change in Freshmen Interest and Enrollment

	2009	2010	Difference	%Change
Applied	8,331	8,398	67	0.8%
Accepted	5,301	5,423	122	2.3%
Acceptance Rate	63.6%	64.6%	--	1.0%
Enrolled	1,641	1,761	120	7.3%
Show Rate (Enrolled/Accepted)	31.0%	32.5%	--	1.5%

 

 

Macomb One-Year Change in Transfer Interest and Enrollment

	2009	2010	Difference	%Change
Applied	2,391	2,421	30	1.3%
Accepted	1,732	1,768	36	2.1%
Enrolled	1,139	1,141	2	0.2%
Show Rate (Enrolled/Accepted)	65.8%	64.5%	--	(1.3%)

 

 

Quad Cities Campus Performance

On the Quad Cities campus, total enrollment was down 3.4% (52 students). The main decrease was due to an 80-student decrease in graduate student enrollment, which was partially offset by increases in undergraduate student enrollment. The Quad Cities campus will be working with the enrollment consultant on general graduate student recruitment strategies. Admissions decisions are made at the academic level.

Quad Cities enrollment is expected to increase. First, the total enrollment decline is, in part, due to enrollment reporting procedures. Federal guidelines allow students to be counted at only one institution (Macomb or Quad Cities) until there are separate financial aid offices for both campuses. Majority of hours taken on a campus determines Western student location. Beginning fall 2011, Quad Cities students taking online classes will be coded as Quad Cities off-campus students. In the past, all online students had been counted as Macomb off-campus.

Second, the Quad Cities campus continues to partner with Academic Affairs to ensure that all programs and supporting classes are available to Quad Cities students locally or through distance education. In fall 2010, 57 Quad Cities students had the majority of hours in Macomb to complete degree requirements. However, the percent of fully completable degrees on the Quad Cities campus in a two-year rotation has increased from 48% of all programs for students starting in fall the 2005-2007 cohort to 71% for students in the 2008-2010 cohort. Degrees completable on a part-time basis is 86%.

Third, the Quad Cities campus continues to strengthen partnerships with community colleges. Fall 2011 will see expansion to the Linkages program that allows students to take classes at the community college and Western at the same time, there will be joint recruitment and advisement between institutions, and the campus will implement articulation agreements for students in applied programs into Western’s Bachelor of General Studies program.

 

Quad Cities One-Year Change in Transfer Interest and Enrollment

	2009	2010	Difference	%Change
Applied	358	370	12	3.4%
Accepted	303	312	9	3.0%
Enrolled	205	203	(2)	(1.0%)
Show Rate (Enrolled/Accepted)	67.7%	65.1%	--	(2.6%)

 

 

Benchmark Comparisons

The Enrollment, Retention and Graduation Rate Information Report presented at today’s Western Illinois University Board of Trustees meeting discusses additional strategies used by both campuses to increase total student enrollment. Benchmarking and adapting best practices at peer institutions should help to increase the University’s show-rate (ratio of accepted to enrolled).

 

New Freshmen and New Transfer Show Rates - Fall 2009

	WIU	Low	Average	High
Illinois Public University Subset
New Freshman Show Rate	32.5%	32.5%	35.9%	39.5%
New Transfer Show Rate	65.8%	55.1%	62.6%	70.0%
All Illinois Public Universities
New Freshman Show Rate	32.5%	32.5%	36.2%	39.5%
New Transfer Show Rate	65.8%	55.1%	63.2%	75.1%

 

 

 

Both Western campuses continue to diversify. The Macomb campus experienced increases in minority student and Pell grant recipient enrollment as a percent of total enrollment. The Quad Cities campus experienced increases in minority student enrollment and international student enrollment as a percent of total student enrollment.

 

 

As enrollment continues to diversify, students continue to have increased opportunity to interact with other students from different cultures and backgrounds, which promotes Western’s core value of personal growth. U.S. News & World Report’s Diversity Index reports the probability two students from different ethnic backgrounds will interact on a daily basis. Western is at the average for the subset of Illinois public universities, but is below the average of Illinois public universities. There are high minority populations at universities in urban areas (e.g., Chicago State University, Governors State University).

 

U.S. News & World Report's Diversity Index - Fall 2009

	WIU	Low	Average	High
Illinois Public University Subset	0.28	0.24	0.29	0.35
All Illinois Public Universities	0.28	0.24	0.41	0.66

 

 

 

The average ACT score and ACT interquartile range (middle half of the ACT distribution) of new freshmen enrolled at the University decreased. However, the percent of freshmen from the top 25 percent of their high school graduating class increased to the highest point (25%) in six years.

 

ACT and High School Rank of WIU New Fall Freshmen

	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Average ACT Score	21.2	21.2	21.2	21.3	21.0
ACT Interquartile Range	18-23	19-24	19-23	19-23	18-23
Freshmen from top 25% of HS Class	20%	22%	20%	22%	25%

 

When comparing entering student characteristics across colleges and universities, it is important to carefully consider institution mission and traditions. The University’s commitment to special admission skews entering student comparisons. Western has annually admitted between 230 and 347 new freshmen who, as part of the core value of educational opportunity, do not meet all of published admissions requirements, but who demonstrate the willingness to work toward shared educational objectives. These students have been successful at the University. The most recent six-year graduation rate comparisons (fall 2004 cohort) show that specially admitted students graduate at rates comparable to regularly admitted students, 54.2% compared to 58.8%,respectively.

 

ACT and High School Rank - Fall 2009

	WIU	Low	Average	High
Illinois Public Universities Subset
Average ACT Score	21.3	21.3	22.4	24.0
ACT Interquartile Range	19-23	19-23	20-25	22-26
From Top 25% of High School Class	22%	22%	29%	44%
All Illinois Public Universities
Average ACT Score	21.3	18.5	22.6	28.5
ACT Interquartile Range	19-23	16-21	20-25	26-31
From Top 25% of High School Class	22%	22%	43%	83%

 

 

Western Illinois University students are served by a high-achieving, diverse faculty and staff. Higher Values in Higher Education identifies faculty and staff salaries that meet and exceed the mean of peer institutions as the highest institutional priority. The University experienced increases in salaries as a percent of peer group averages for all ranks of faculty. Average professor salaries now exceed peer group averages and average associate professor salaries are less than one percent from meeting this benchmark.