Summer school a hit for college students

Summer enrollment is way up when compared to last year at Utah colleges and universities.

Perhaps most significant is a 14 percent increase at Salt Lake Community College, where Deneece Huftalin, vice president of student services, says welcoming more students is a continuing trend.

"People are examining their external environment and starting to rethink their ideas on going back to school to get training and additional skills," Huftalin said. If someone gets laid off from work, she said, they can quickly get into classes at SLCC.

"They are realizing that additional education can make them more marketable," she said.

Not only are there more people on campus, but those students also are taking more classes. While numbers used to show students enrolling in the average nine credit hours or fewer per semester, Huftalin said more people are taking a full load.

SLCC already serves more than 26,000 students in a typical school year, as well as just fewer than 8,000 of them online. That number has been rising consistently for several semesters.

For summer semester, an additional 12,037 students enrolled in classes, amounting to a full-time equivalent of 5,406 students.

"Perhaps students are feeling the economic crunch, sensing an urgency for training," Huftalin said.

Utah Valley University has also experienced significant growth, reporting approximately 9,400 new students have signed up for summer classes. More than 5,000 of them are full-time students, which is the largest summer boost the school has seen. The increase equates to nearly 13 percent.

Weber State University continues to grow as well, boasting a nearly 12 percent enrollment growth for summer 2009.

Summer school has its advantages, Huftalin said, as some courses are shorter, but more intense, and others aren't as crowded. UVU's director of extended studies says the school, which became a four-year university last year, is making an effort to offer more summer courses that help students obtain their degrees.

Also at UVU, all students are entitled to in-state tuition during the summer, and parking is free.

E-MAIL: wleonard@desnews.com