Edited on August 27, 6 p.m.
Enrollment at the main Troy campus has gone up by 12 percent this year.
This comes despite hikes in tuition fees and scholarship awards becoming more selective.
There are 2,362 new freshmen and transfer students at Troy this year. Last academic year, the number was 2,106.
“This is the most significant increase the university has seen in the last six years,” said Buddy Starling, dean of enrollment management.
Starling attributes this increase to a variety of factors, including effective recruiting and marketing, the efforts of faculty and staff, as well as current students and alumni sharing their Troy experience with others.
Tuition for the 2015-16 academic year also increased by $15 per credit hour for undergraduate classes and by $32 for graduate classes compared to the 2014-15 academic year.
The increase in tuition from 2013-14 to 2014-15 was $8 and $27 per credit hour for undergraduate and graduate classes and $15 and $31 from 2012-13 to 2013-14.
Current seniors who entered as freshmen in the 2012-13 academic year have seen a 15.26 percent increase in tuition fees over the course of their time at Troy.
Adjustments have also been made to the eligibility of the Millennium, Chancellor and Leadership scholarships.
The new requirements for the Millennium Scholar’s Award is 32 ACT or 1420 SAT with a 3.7 GPA; the Chancellor’s Award is 28 ACT or 1260 SAT with a 3.5 GPA; and the Leadership scholarship is 23 ACT or 1070 SAT with a 3.0 GPA.
The qualifications for ACT were increased by one point and the SAT scores by 40 points in comparison to previous years.
Current recipients of these institutional scholarships will not be affected by the adjustments made. They apply only to those entering in fall 2016.
Starling does not expect any more requirement changes for the Millennium, Chancellor and Leadership scholarships in the upcoming years.
The previous requirements for these scholarships had remained unchanged for the last 15 years.
Walt Goolsby, a freshman political science major from Fairhope, said that Troy University’s increase in tuition and more selective scholarships will affect future student enrollment and create a greater financial burden for students.
“One factor of my decision to come to Troy was its affordability,” he said.
“However, even the PACT scholarship no longer covers full current tuition, forcing many students to find jobs (while studying),” he continued.
As of August 2015, the Alabama Prepaid Affordable College Tuition program (AL PACT) funds tuition at the 2010 tuition rate plus 3 percent, in accordance with Alabama Legislature stipulations.
While scholarships play an essential role for many students in their decision to attend Troy University, money is not the only factor that motivates them to attend.
Carli Kayler, a sophomore nursing major from Roswell, Georgia, and recipient of the Chancellor’s Award, said that both her academic and athletic scholarships influenced her decision to attend Troy.
“I think a lot of people come to Troy because of the scholarships that Troy offers, but also because of the continual improvements that are being made to campus,” Kayler said.
Coale Jordan, a junior history major from Brewton and a transfer student, said that his Transfer Merit Scholarship encouraged and affirmed his choice to come to Troy.
“I already loved Troy before coming here, especially because of the relationships I made on my visits, and when I found out about the scholarship from Dendy Moseley, community college relations coordinator, it solidified my decision to attend,” Jordan said.
He added that knowing the requirements of his scholarship beforehand motivated him to work harder and maintain a 4.0 GPA at his community college.
“College affordability is an issue that every family has to deal with,” Starling said.
“Scholarships are clearly a differentiator for us, but we are setting ourselves apart from other universities by focusing on the relationship with the student and the student’s family.”
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