The University of West Florida is gearing up for the fall semester, with students moving into on-campus housing this week. For 2023-24, the university received its largest-ever number of first-year applications and expects more than 14,000 students - a record number - to report for classes starting Monday.
“Enrollment at UWF overall is way up; we're 5% higher than we were last year,” said Dr. Greg Tomso, vice president for Academic Engagement and Student Affairs.
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“But the big story is in our incoming freshman class. We are welcoming our second largest freshman class in our history, and we are up 30% over last year.”
The university had accepted a little less than 1,800 freshmen as of Wednesday, but Dr. Tomso, many more first-year students sought to get in.
“Our University and really our community here in Northwest Florida hit a huge milestone this year. UWF received over 10,000 applications for admission, and we had to actually cut off our application acceptance mark because we were afraid of taking in too many students,” he explained. “We want to make sure that we can provide all of the supports and activities and classes that our students need. So, we are growing. We are robust, but we're also making sure that we provide the quality that we're known for.”
Tomso explains there are a few reasons for the record number of freshman applications, including internal changes to make admission easier and more attractive for students.
“We've also seen some demographic changes since the COVID-19 pandemic, and that has led to some population growth in our region. And we're also becoming, every year, more of a first choice school, a destination school for high achieving students around the state, around the region, and around the world.”
As a result, UWF’s international student enrollment is at a record high this year, as is enrollment in the Kugelman Honors program.
With record-breaking enrollment this year and for each of the last three years (13,043 in 2020, 13,226 in 2021, and 13,465 in 2022), Tomso assures the university’s leadership is planning for the growth that’s underway.
“We received funding this year to build a new research annex in engineering, and that's going to be a big new footprint on campus and allow us to have lots of new programs, lab space, and new student opportunities,” he began. “We're also going to start looking into building a new residence hall and seeing if that can be economically feasible.”
Not counting staff, UWF has 1,559 on-campus bed spaces available at its seven residential halls. Currently, all of them are under contract, with a waiting list of about 200.
Those students who secured a room at Presidents Hall began moving in on Wednesday. Dr. Tomso and other members of UWF’s leadership team went over to meet and greet, beginning with the residence hall staff manning the front desk.
“Good morning. It’s not 120,000 degrees outside, right,” said Tomso, noting the slight break from this summer's extreme heat. “I know and they’re coming in and their awake and they’re not melty. It’s all wonderful.”
There was a traffic jam developing at the elevators, with carts, wagons and arms loaded with bedding and other dorm supplies.
It was on the elevator that the university vice president engaged with the family of incoming freshman Astrid Huber from the Tampa area.
”How’s move in day going so far?” Tomso asked.
“I’m an emotional wreck,” responded Huber’s mom, Danielle Huft.
“So the student is doing fine, but mom, not so much,” Tomso confirmed. Then he pledged that the university would take very good care of her student.
Astrid, who plans to major in computer science, said he picked UWF because he thought the campus was nice and it had a good science and engineering program. Living in the dorm, he added, gives him easy access to campus activities.
“There’s a climbing center and then there’s an aquatic center, maybe swimming, or there are sport clubs, where maybe you could do jujitsu or fencing,” he explained.
Living at Presidents Hall also has its benefits, as all the students in this dorm are part of the STEM Living and Learning Community (LLC).
That includes freshman Madalynn Riddle, a mechanical engineering major, who chose to live on campus over commuting from her home in Milton.
“I wanted to get out of the house and just try the college life, I suppose,” Riddle explained. “So, I’m excited and nervous at the same time.”
“Honestly, it's more than just putting heads in beds,” according to Leigh Prouty, director of UWF Housing and Residence Life.
“We want students to occupy our buildings," stated Prouty. "But, more so, it connects them to the university and keeps them engaged.”
And as the university transforms into a more traditional campus, Tomso acknowledges that a big part of the equation is athletics, especially UWF’s hugely successful football program, which played its inaugural season just seven years ago.
“We have a national championship under our belt, and we were in the playoffs last year,” Tomso boasted. “We're looking now to see if we can expand Pen Air Field and perhaps build a more permanent stadium here on campus. And we're really excited about those conversations.”
Meantime, the football program, with new head coach Caleb Nobles, opens the season at home with its temporary setup at Pen Air Field on Friday, Sept. 1.
