Purdue Northwest Sets University Record for Student Retention

Purdue-Northwest-colorPurdue Northwest begins its academic year by setting records for retention rates and for full-time student populations.

Retention of PNW students has increased to 68.2 percent, up 7.5 percent from last year, and Chancellor Thomas L. Keon notes it is the “highest ever” for the university.

“We are making great strides to have direct engagement with our students, encourage our students to start, continue and finish school in a timely fashion and raise the quality of standards for the university. These improvements are there to assist our students and we can see direct correlation of these improvements with our increasing retention rates,” says Vice Chancellor of Enrollment Management and Student Affairs Carmen Panlilio.

Full time freshmen The current freshmen population of 1,125 is 95.1 percent full time.

“Our student population has been changing tremendously over the past several years. The increased academic standards we are setting for our institution is apparent through the quality of our student body,” states Keon. “This year’s freshman class is a fantastic example of this with the students having an average ACT score of 22 and an average high school grade point average of 3.23.”

Of the on-campus undergraduate student body, 66.6 percent are the first in their families to attend college.

Total enrollment at PNW is 12,071 students comprised of continuing students, transfers, those new to college, others enrolled in online academic partnership programs and high school concurrent/dual credit enrollees.

Other 2017-18 Purdue Northwest enrollment numbers include:

  • On-campus Undergraduate Student Population: 78.9% Full-Time, 21.2% Part-Time
  • Total Dual Credit/Concurrent Student Enrollment: 2,236
  • On-campus Undergraduate Student Enrollment by Gender: 49.7% Men, 50.3% Women
  • On-campus Undergraduate Student Enrollment by Ethnicity: White/Caucasian, 59.8%; Hispanic/Latino, 19.8%, Black or African American, 10%; International, 4.5%; 2 or more races, 2.9%; Asian, 1.8%; American Indian or Alaskan, .2%; Unknown, 1.0%

Purdue University Northwest Purdue University Northwest (PNW), a comprehensive regional university within the Purdue University system, has two Northwest Indiana campuses in Hammond and Westville. For more information about PNW, visit www.pnw.edu