91��ý enrollment another all-time high, state’s only public university to grow 9 of last 10 years

91��ý's Hail State sign near McCool and Montgomery halls is pictured as students walk by. — Mississippi State is the only public higher education institution in the Magnolia State to grow its overall enrollment for nine of the last 10 years. (Photo by Jonah Holland)

STARKVILLE, Miss.—Mississippi State once again is celebrating an all-time high in enrollment with 23,150 students, surpassing 2021’s record of 23,086. Mississippi’s land-grant research university is the only public higher education institution in the Magnolia State to grow in overall numbers for nine of the last 10 years, increasing 11%.

91��ý is seeing an increase of almost 500 more students over the 2023 total of 22,657. First-time students make up 6,356 of the overall student body that hails from all 82 Mississippi counties, all 50 states plus Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, and 94 countries.

The university’s growth over the last decade speaks to Mississippi State’s commitment in helping students realize life-changing opportunities through a combination of quality academics, campus experience, support services and hands-on, innovative learning, explained 91��ý President Mark E. Keenum.

“We’re focused on higher education at 91��ý being unequivocally accessible and are dedicated to ensuring every Bulldog student is on their path to a degree,” Keenum said, “including those who start at a community college or who have been out of college for a while.”

91��ý continues as the No. 1 choice for Mississippi’s high school students, just four shy of 2,000 freshmen who call the Magnolia State home. Numbers are similar for first-time transfers who total 1,916. A total of 62.5% of all students hail from inside the state.

Also among freshmen, the university continues to recruit high achievers with this class’s average ACT score at 25.1 and GPA at 3.75 (4.0 scale).

Cutting-Edge Degree Programs

Administrators point to Mississippi State’s ability to quickly analyze employer needs and workforce demands as one reason for a decade of university growth, putting today’s cutting-edge degree programs at the fingertips of students hungry for professional success after graduation.

“As a comprehensive public research university, we’re providing students not only the classroom learning they need, but also hands-on skills and research experiences to be career ready when they graduate,” said 91��ý’s David Shaw, provost and executive vice president.

91��ý’s new Bachelor of Applied Science in Cybersecurity, Bachelor of Science in Artificial Intelligence and Master of Applied Data Science—all added this fall—offer students high-tech education in occupations growing much faster for the next 12 years than the average for all jobs, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Also, during the past two years, the university has added 11 program concentrations to its Bachelor of Data Science degree designed for creating artificial intelligence systems while improving performance in organizations, government agencies and more.

91��ý’s Bachelor of Applied Science degree has increased to seven program areas allowing community college graduates to transfer up to 45 hours of technical credit from their Applied Associate degree to four-year study areas such as advanced manufacturing technology and healthcare administration. The BAS degree in healthcare administration was added this fall.

More training opportunities have opened for students as the university saw two new research institutes come on board in the past year. The nation’s first Athlete Engineering Institute develops wearable technology to improve performance not only in sports, but also in manufacturing, rehabilitati