Texas A&M University has announced that it will stop undergraduate enrollment growth for the next five to seven years as part of an initiative to “right-size” the university and catch up on building infrastructure.
Annually, 15,000 undergraduate students will be able to enroll, comprising 11,750 freshmen and a transfer class of 3,250.
The announcement was made on Thursday by Texas A&M (TAMU) President Mark Welsh, who mentioned that the student body had grown 30 percent in the past ten years.
“Collectively, we absorbed much of the impact of this growth over the last 10 years, but as I’ve said before, we cannot continue to do that,” Welsh wrote. “We must right-size our university in the near-term to ensure we maintain an incredible education and experience for our students over the long-term.”
While undergraduate enrollment growth will pause, graduate programs, online programs, and courses outside of the Bryan-College Station campus will not be affected and will continue to grow at a “modest” rate, according to the announcement.
Welsh outlined additional plans, including purchasing eight to ten buses, developing plans for new facilities including classrooms and dining spaces, investing $3 million annually for five years in new faculty salaries and benefits, and making improvements to West Campus.
TAMU will also create a 10-year enrollment forecast that estimates revenue, expenses, and infrastructure needs.
Welsh’s decision comes after a committee provided him with recommendations on how to improve the student experience. The committee communicated these through two university-wide studies: the 2024 Student Experience Study Report and Capacity Study.
According to the report on student experience, one of the four major threats to quality is the “impacts of growth beyond our capacity to serve students effectively, particularly in accessibility of services and in the student support infrastructure” including “parking, transit, dining and affordable housing.”
“I haven’t even mentioned the traffic on Wellborn or the sardine-packed buses that make commuting something to lament,” one student columnist wrote. “Unfortunately, a respectable and enjoyable college experience isn’t as easy as saying ‘the more the merrier.’ Our goal should never be to just plainly admit more students year after year, which the university has openly prioritized over making the students here feel more at home.”
In September, university provosts were invited to testify on rapid enrollment growth before the Higher Education Senate Subcommittee. TAMU Provost Alan Sams testified that the university was facing concerns over core course availability and was considering pausing enrollment growth.
A Board of Regents oversees the Texas A&M University System. They are appointed by Gov. Abbott and confirmed by the Texas Senate.
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