With a continuing tradition of large incoming classes, Hope College has more than 3,200 students for the first time.
The college has enrolled 3,203 students this fall, topping last year's high of 3,141 by 62. It is the fifth consecutive year that Hope has enrolled a record number of students, and Hope has set records for overall enrollment in eight of the past nine years.
"Obviously we're very pleased and extremely grateful for the wonderful freshman class that chose to enroll at Hope this fall," said Dr. James Bekkering, vice president for admissions at Hope, who noted that the record follows particularly strong enrollment among new students "for four wonderful years in a row."
There are 778 first-time students at the college this year, the third-largest total in the college's history. The overall student body includes Hope's four largest first-time enrollments: 811 in the fall of 2003, 781 in the fall of 2004 and 775 last year.
"It's just very gratifying to see the reputation of the college grow and to see so many young people interested in a college that integrates faith and learning the way Hope does," Bekkering said. "It's done very distinctively here, and obviously people are finding it attractive."
The student body consists of 1,283 men and 1,920 women from 44 states and 29 foreign countries.
The enrollment by class, with last year's class in parentheses, is: freshmen, 805 (800); sophomores, 763 (785); juniors, 713 (735); seniors, 828 (750); and special students, 94 (71).
Students transferring to Hope from other colleges and universities total 70, compared with 67 in 2005. There are 118 students in off-campus programs, compared to 124 last year.
The largest representation is from Michigan with 2,243 students, followed by: Illinois, 376; Indiana, 120; Ohio, 82; Minnesota, 44; Wisconsin, 42; New York, 38; Iowa, 22; California, 21; Colorado and New Jersey, 17 each; Pennsylvania, 15; Missouri and Virginia, 14 each; and Florida, 11.
Foreign countries represented in the student body include: Albania, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Denmark, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Ghana, Haiti, India, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Mexico, Nepal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Singapore, Sudan, Sweden, Trinidad, Uganda, Ukraine, Uruguay and Vietnam.
Hope College was chartered in 1866 and is affiliated with the Reformed Church in America (RCA). The college offers courses in 83 majors leading to a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Music, Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree.