For the sixth year in a row, Iowa State has hit record enrollment and the College of Business is no exception.

This year, the College of Business has hit a record enrollment of 4,082 students. This includes all students in pre-business and business majors. 

This fall, there are 34,732 students enrolled university-wide.

“We just keep getting bigger and bigger, and the classes are getting bigger as they move through the system,” said Laura Doering, registrar.

Students returning in higher numbers, rather than a large freshmen class, are responsible for the enrollment numbers.

“Students come, and they have a really good experience, and that translates into high retention rates,” said Katharine Suski, director of admissions.

The current Iowa State retention rate is 86.5 percent.

Suski said that students are getting the experience they were promised before attending, and that is what is making them stay.

“Business is something that students have on their radar,” said Diann Burright, director of undergraduate programs in the College of Business.

Burright said that business is a large major that many students know about upon arriving at Iowa State, which factors into the number of students deciding to pursue a business major.

Students are not finding Iowa State by chance. Iowa State emphasizes focusing on their recruiting process, Suski said. This strategy helps get students interested in the school.

“We have to be very thoughtful in planning for enough of everything,” Burright said. “When there are more students enrolled, there are both positive and negative consequences.”

Students might have to act more quickly on opportunities and planning ahead further in advance to get into courses that they may need.

“It nudges people to think ahead a little bit more,” Burright said.

Having more students means the college needs to offer more courses for students, more opportunities and more time to meet with staff.

“The question we ask is how are we going to continue to serve well when there are more [students],” Burright said.

Having a larger number of students in the college may mean less physical space, but students can benefit from this by the addition of extra course offerings and the increased opportunities being offered, Burright said.

Burright also said that she anticipates enrollment in the College of Business to continue to rise if the other colleges continue to increase their numbers as well. She said many students change their major and find their way to the business school later in their career.