UF braces for record number of students

More than 46,000 are expected to strain housing and parking this fall.

©Associated Press

© St. Petersburg Times,
published August 22, 2001

GAINESVILLE -- The University of Florida is bursting at the seams, with a record number of students about to squeeze into overflowing parking lots and fight for classes.

President Charles Young admits that the school may have more students than it needs.

The state's flagship university is expecting about 46,126 students this fall -- 43,714 on the Gainesville campus. That is 8,000 more than the university had 10 years ago.

Last year, UF was the fourth-largest university in the United States in total enrollment with 45,114 students. (The University of Texas at Austin with 49,996 was first.)

Young said recently that the UF student body is already too large for its infrastructure, especially in campus housing and parking. Having such a large student body can put a strain on the students themselves, he said.

"These students are coming from schools that have maybe 2,000 or 3,000 students at most," he said. "It's easy for them to feel lost. Many of them also have to adjust from being the best and the brightest in their class to being just one of the crowd."

The first official enrollment figures from state universities will be available in early September, said George Perkins, who keeps track.

Some other fall enrollment expectations:

The University of South Florida in Tampa and St. Petersburg, about 35,500, about the same as last year.

The University of Central Florida in Orlando, 35,600, compared with 33,453 last fall.

Florida International University in Miami has 25,416 registered, but registration will continue a few more weeks. That compares with 32,196 last fall.

Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, 3,921 enrolled as of Tuesday, with admissions to continue through Monday. Tuesday's figure represents a 7 percent increase over last year.

New College in Sarasota, 637, compared with 645 last year.

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