Welcome Weekend slideshow: Meet the Class of 2028
An increase of more than 23 percent in new freshmen — part of a 6 percent jump in overall student enrollment — keeps the momentum going at UND
They hail from 46 states and Washington, D.C., as well as from multiple military bases and six Canadian provinces. They include 11 National Merit scholars, or three more than enrolled as freshmen in the fall of 2023, and just over 23 percent more Presidential Scholars than were in the previous freshman class, which itself had 16.63% more Presidential Scholars than its predecessor.
They include students from Papua New Guinea — a country that had no students at all at UND in 2023, and now has enough students in the freshmen class to come in third out of 17 countries, behind only the United States and Canada.
And for all of their varied backgrounds, the new freshman class at UND acted as one for their their very first accomplishment at UND. They thrilled the campus community by their very numbers, which, at 2,221 on the first day, represent a full 23.87 percent increase over the comparable fall 2023 first-day figure of 1,793.
Couple this with a 6.23 percent increase in the University’s overall student headcount — a jump from 13,861 last fall to 14,724 this week — and you’ll see why UND is excited.
As is the case every fall, the numbers above (and everywhere else in this story) are tentative. That’s because official counts won’t be available until the North Dakota University System’s official Census Day count, which will happen this year on Sept. 23.
Even so, the energy on campus is electric, UND President Andy Armacost said last week in his State of the University address.
“It’s a great trend (in enrollment), it’s positive, and it bucks the national trends,” Armacost said in his address. “We’re retaining people at a higher rate, they’re coming to us at a faster rate, and we’re graduating more and more students. We’re humming along. … and it takes everybody’s effort to do that.”
Janelle Kilgore, vice provost for Strategic Enrollment Management, agreed. “Dr. Armacost’s No. 1 leadership value is, ‘Love your people,’” Kilgore said. “This value is why we continue to see positive growth in enrollment. Our students have the opportunity to get a world-class education while feeling valued by our faculty and staff. We all want to do better when we feel valued, and I am so proud of the continued collaboration around campus to support students.”
During the traditional Welcome Weekend of Aug. 24-25, the University says “Thank you for choosing UND!” to its newest students while giving them an informal but informative introduction to college life and the chance to meet new people and enjoy activities. To learn more and get a sense of the spirit of the occasion, click on this extensive slideshow of photos from Welcome Weekend, which was prepared and put together by the University’s photographers.
Enjoy!
