The 2009 fall quarter at Raymond Walters College has seen an all-time record enrollment for RWC of 4,820 students. This is the final official number submitted to the State for subsidy determination. Because students could add or drop classes until October 7, it is not possible to know the actual number of students who enrolled at the beginning of the quarter. The number varies too much, and thus is not tracked by the Office of Institutional Research.Last fall, 4,214 students enrolled at Raymond Walters. A comparison between the 2008 fall quarter and the 2009 fall quarter shows an increase of 606 students, roughly a fourteen percent jump. In addition, new RWC student headcount increased by 33.8 percent over last autumn quarter. The College is serving 1,286 new students this autumn compared to 961 last autumn.
According to Chris Powers, RWC Director of Enrollment Services at Raymond Walters, the record enrollment has occurred because RWC revamped orientation and placement testing. Unlike past years, both orientation and placement testing became required for all freshmen. This move lured students to register earlier, rather than wait till August or September.