In upcoming admissions cycles, Binghamton University will aim to diversify the student population with more out-of-state admits following the release of unofficial admissions statistics from fall 2019.

The statistics were released at the most recent Binghamton University Council meeting by Donald Loewen, vice provost for undergraduate education and an associate professor of Russian. Loewen said out-of state recruitment has been a focus for several years and the 2019 admissions statistics show an increase in first-year out-of-state enrollment from 2017 to 2019, but a decrease in international enrollment.

“Recruiting out-of-state brings us voices from around the country and it really helps to enrich the conversations on campus to have a broad variety of diversity on campus through those recruiting initiatives,” Loewen said.

According to the statistics provided by the undergraduate admissions team, first-year applications for 2018-19 increased by almost 5,300 for 2017-18, while 2019-20 admissions showed a decrease of 1,200 students from last year.

With 37,516 first-year applicants for 2019, and 2,896 students enrolled, BU had an enrollment rate of roughly 7.7 percent.

In addition, statistics show a decrease in transfer applications from 2017 to 2019 by approximately 350 students.

First-year SAT scores have stayed consistent with past years, showing a two-point increase in the average scores of accepted students. Loewen said this year’s average score of 1374 accurately shows which students BU looks for.

“These scores show a pretty good representation of the quality of students that we are being able to recruit here, including out-of-state students,” Loewen said. “The whole group as a cohort has been very strong in the past couple of years.”

Admissions counselors also compiled a list of the schools that serve as top competitors for admitted students. This year, Harpur College competed with schools like Stony Brook, Cornell, New York University (NYU) and Boston University. BU’s School of Management is challenged by Baruch College and the University of Michigan. Watson is rivaled by the Rochester Institute of Technology, University at Buffalo and the Stevens Institute of Technology. The College of Community and Public Affairs is shown to compete with Stony Brook, Cornell and NYU. The Decker College of Nursing and Health Sciences competes with Villanova University, Hunter College and the University of Delaware.

“What we do every year is that we take all students that we have admitted and we send their names to the National Student Clearinghouse and they report back where those students actually end up,” Loewen said.

Loewen said the team is placing focus on out-of-state admissions and international admissions by touting a strong alumni base and competition for students within New York state.

“We are a New York [state] institution; we are the best SUNY,” Loewen said. “We say that with pride and we want to make sure that we keep that in the lens of our New York state constituents and high school counselors.”