Siena Heights University welcomed nearly 400 first-time and transfer undergraduate students on its Adrian campus this fall. Classes begin on the Adrian campus on Aug. 27. In addition, the university is expected to enroll more than 680 students this fall from its post-traditional and graduate programs.
“We are excited about the class we are bringing in this fall,” said SHU Vice President of Enrollment Management George Wolf. “Academically this is one of our stronger classes, and we had a great year recruiting in the Toledo and metro Detroit regions. We also have one of the largest cohorts of international students we’ve had in several years. I appreciate all the hard work of our admissions and enrollment staff members, as well as those who worked with them, in bringing in this class.”
“We continue to build reputation for our academic quality and value among private institutions in the region,” said SHU President Sister Peg Albert, OP, PhD. “We are proud of our recent listing on Money Magazine’s ‘Best Colleges for Your Money’ list, not to mention our Online Program is again recognized as one of the top 25 in the nation and the best in Michigan by U.S. News and World Report. We look forward to another productive and exciting academic year here at Siena Heights.”
Wolf said the Office of Undergraduate Admissions received more than 2,000 applications, a 4 percent increase from the 2017-18 cycle. SHU’s new class includes students from 10 states and six countries. In addition, SHU’s Graduate College saw a 27 percent increase in enrollment from the previous period last year.
He said the addition of a Master of Business Administration (MBA) program – which enrolled its first students in January 2018 – is another exciting development for the university. Starting this fall, a new Accelerated Bachelor’s to MBA Program is available to students on the Adrian campus. Students accepted to the program are eligible to take up to three MBA courses as part of their undergraduate program – at the undergraduate tuition rate. Other new Adrian undergraduate majors include environmental engineering, global studies and theatrical design and technology.
Also, the university will begin its new Honors Program and has approximately 20 students enrolled in the program for this fall. Finally, the first eSports student-athletes will be on campus to compete in SHU’s newest intercollegiate sport.
“Being a Dominican, Catholic university, we were looking for students who understand our mission and will also be a good fit on campus,” President Albert said. “Increased enrollment is important, but not at the expense of our standards of student service and academic quality. That’s what ‘The Siena Effect’ is all about.”
With this year’s class finished, Wolf said inquiries for the 2019-20 class are already running significantly above the previous year’s levels as the university prepares to celebrate its 100th anniversary during the 2019-20 academic year.
“Siena Heights recently received a federal S-STEM grant that will allow us to offer significant scholarship dollars to qualified students in the areas of biology, chemistry and environmental science,” Wolf said. “And we have more new programs and initiatives on the way.”
For more information about Siena Heights University, visit www.sienaheights.edu.
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