South Dakota State University Enrollment Declines

Enrollment at South Dakota's largest university, South Dakota State University in Brookings, is down for the 2019 academic year.

According to KSFY, the enrollment figures released by the South Dakota Board of Regents reveals a 4.86% decline for the fall semester, with a total enrolment of 11,518.  Full-time equivalent student enrollment dropped by 4%.

Things aren't any better at the five other South Dakota public universities, total enrollment is down 3% across the board.

KSFY reports that with South Dakota's low unemployment rate, prospective students may choose to enter the workforce, especially if they have a hard time securing resources to enroll in college, according to the board of Regents executive director Paul Beran.

Beran continues:

South Dakota lacks a stable source of state-level, need-based financial aid.  In our work with the Governor and state legislators, we’ll continue to stress that such support is critical to make higher education a reality for more students.