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Retention helps push enrollment to all-time high
Rose-Hulman’s record 96 percent student retention rate for 1997 freshmen ranks
alongside — and in some cases better than — Ivy League colleges for student
perseverance.
Sophomore retention also was at the highest mark ever as 84 percent returned to begin
their junior year.
The retention rate for last year’s junior class is 79 percent, the second-best in
school history.
That excellent student retention and the second-largest freshman class in school history
increased Rose-Hulman’s fall enrollment to a record 1,749 students — 81 more
than last year’s record. (This marked the fourth consecutive year that a record
number of students have enrolled for the fall quarter.)
“We rank alongside Harvard, Yale and Princeton in terms of student retention,”
said President Samuel Hulbert, adding that retention is an indicator of a college’s
quality and student satisfaction.
Hulbert attributed the record retention statistics to the academic quality of Rose-Hulman
students, innovative academic programs, new campus facilities and the strong job market.
The 1998-99 freshmen class totaled 429 students, the second-largest incoming class at
Rose-Hulman. The class includes a record number of valedictorians. Almost 25 percent of
freshmen were ranked in the top three of their high-school class. The median SAT score for
the freshman class is 1350.
The fall enrollment total includes record numbers of students majoring in chemical
engineering, computer science, computer engineering and mechanical engineering.
 
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