h
Collegedale News 5
Mental Health 7
Sports 7
Opinion 8
Religion 8
Lifestyle 9
The Southern Accent
Update of the week page 3 Progress of SA’s Proposal on Amazon Lockers on Southern's Campus Volume 81 Issue 06
The Student Voice Since 1926
Pressing Issue page 2 Is there an official TPUSA chapter at Southern? TPUSA activity on Campus
Collegedale, Tennessee
October 22, 2025
Southern reaches record-high enrollment
Freshman Welcome Party for Fall 2025. (Photo by Katie McConnell).
Eliana Morales Managing Editor Southern Adventist University’s enrollment this fall semester is at a record high, with undergraduate enrollment hitting 2,992 students, according to official data. While freshman enrollment has not broken any records, it is the fourth-largest incoming class, with 642 students. When combining both undergraduate and graduate students, total enrollment for the Fall 2025 semester stands at 3,346, surpassing the previous record of 3,301 students in Fall 2012. These totals represent Southern’s raw headcount, meaning that they include anyone registered in at least one
course, according to Ryan Harrell, Southern’s website and analytics manager. Graduate enrollment, which declined after the COVID-19 pandemic, has started to rebound. This fall, the university enrolled 50 more graduate students than last year, marking the strongest graduate numbers since 2019, according to enrollment data. “There’s been a much bigger focus on recruiting graduate students this year than in the past, which is hopefully playing a role,” Harrell said. However, it is too early to tell from the data how influential the effort will be. Although graduate enrollment remains below the record Fall 2015 levels, this year’s undergraduate numbers
were strong enough to push the university to a new overall record. Growth Factors The School of Engineering and Physics’ introduction of the Bachelor of Science in Engineering (BSE) program created growth for Southern, according to Harrell. Before the BSE program existed, engineering students could only complete a two-year degree. “Engineering has been a critical part of our growth because anytime you add a new program, you’re bringing in students that weren’t there before,” Harrell said. “You’re adding a completely new pool that has never been accessed before.”
Cindy Vargas, a freshman engineering major with a concentration in mechanical engineering, is one of the students who may not have attended Southern if there was no four-year engineering program. She explained why she chose to study engineering. “It was just one of the things that seemed to fit me,” she said. “I also took a test that would reveal which careers suit you best, and engineering was in my top ten.” Sean Walters, associate professor at the School of Engineering and Physics, discussed how the expanded program impacted enrollment. “As a result of launching the fourSee Enrollment on page 2
“ With increasing enrollment comes more energy, more student club activities and more supportive friendships.” - Blake Laing