DSU has been open enrollment since 2013, but as it grows as a university, the increase of student body can be overwhelming.
DSU is known for its active learning, active life motto, but recently, various classes have not been able to put the motto into action due to a large number of students in classes.
During fall 2019, Dixie’s student population has grown 12.49%. With this growth, we are continually being the fastest-growing public institution in the state of Utah.
As we go into Division I, DSU should strive to be more inclusive due to the high demand of undergraduate students; Therefore, we should become more selective with who attends our university.
In fall of 2020, there is predicted to be over 3,000 freshmen enrolling in DSU. A handful of professors are already experiencing downfalls in their classrooms.
Larger class sizes can lead to fewer personal connections between students and teachers. Students can also fall easily behind in classes and lose concentration during class more often.
It is great DSU is expanding as a university, but as we expand it would be ideal to bring the university into a more inclusive setting.
Losing open enrollment would also bring ease to students, providing a more controlled and inclusive environment.
DSU can continue enrolling new students by looking through college applications and determining which students would be best suited for the university. This can help maintain classroom sizes, housing needs, the continuation of a small school title and overall graduation rates.
DSU is stuck between continuing their path as a small university and expanding into a large university setting. DSU currently has 11,100 students actively enrolled as of spring 2020. To be considered a large university the student body will have a minimum of 15,000 students.
If DSU wants to continue as a small university by fall 2020, it needs to start becoming selective with its student body and allowing a limited amount of undergraduates in.
