South Dakota public university enrollment drop includes fewer undergrad and international students

South Dakota public university enrollment decreased by 294 students this year, according to numbers released Thursday by the state Board of Regents.

Overall enrollment, which includes graduate and undergraduate students, is 35,797. Enrollment dropped at three universities and increased at the three others:

• Black Hills State University in Spearfish increased by about 2% to 3,502 students.
• Dakota State University in Madison grew by about 3.5% to 3,975 students.
• Northern State University in Aberdeen grew by 4% to 3,890 students.
• South Dakota Mines in Rapid City decreased by 2% to 2,489 students.
• South Dakota State University in Brookings decreased by about 2% to 11,901 students.
• University of South Dakota in Vermillion decreased by 3.5% to 10,040 students.

System-wide enrollment peaked at 36,662 in 2017, and no year since then has equaled that mark.

“Enrollment is one measure of the health of our universities, but the larger story is what those students are preparing to do,” which is to build the state’s workforce and contribute to its communities, South Dakota Board of Regents Executive Director Nathan Lukkes said in a news release.

International student numbers decline in South Dakota amid immigration crackdown

The numbers could be a sign of the “2025 cliff” feared by higher education officials, attributed to a lower birth rate during the Great Recession of 2007-2009. A 10% decline in high school graduates was expected nationally from 2025 to 2037, Lukkes told lawmakers in 2024.

Undergraduate enrollment systemwide decreased by 401 students this year, to 29,738, including decreases of 377 at South Dakota State University and 175 at the University of South Dakota.

Systemwide international student enrollment decreased by 237. International enrollment also dropped by 76 students last year. The decreases come amid federal immigration policy changes during the Trump administration that have made it more difficult for some foreign students to enter and stay in the country.

Graduate student enrollment systemwide increased by 107 students, and 56 more South Dakota high school graduates are pursuing higher education in the state than last year, according to system data.