The student numbers keep climbing at Okanagan College

By College Relations | September 25, 2018
           

Okanagan College Media Release

Enrolments at the College’s four campuses this fall have increased about 13.3 per cent over the same time last year, suggesting that the institution will likely exceed 2018-19 government enrolment targets. (It would be the 14th year that Okanagan College has done so – the best record among B.C.’s Colleges. Last year, OC achieved 113 per cent of those targets, based on full-time equivalent enrolments.)

Fall enrolment numbers are a snapshot of the College’s activity. Because the College has programs that start at various times of the year, the student numbers won’t be finalized until the end of the fiscal year (March 31, 2019).

When the enrolment period for this fall semester ended in mid-September, Okanagan College had 9,570 students registered, compared to 8,446 students a year ago.

“The numbers are encouraging,” notes Okanagan College President Jim Hamilton, “but what’s really significant is that they tell us and the community that we are helping more students pursue higher education.”

“The latest B.C. labour market projections show that by 2028, there will be 903,000 job openings that need to be filled in B.C.,” Hamilton noted. “Eighty per cent of those jobs will require some form of higher education. That’s where we come in.”

Kelowna’s campus enrolment grew to 6,126 this fall compared to 5,330 last year, while Vernon’s student headcount climbed to 1,088 from 970. Penticton enrolment grew to 1,025 from 940 and Salmon Arm’s student numbers increased to 721 from 692. Students registered in distance education courses grew to 610 from 514.

(Those numbers include students in all levels of programming – from new first-year students, to students enrolled in the fourth year of their degree programs.)

While international student numbers have grown at the College (1,393 this fall, compared to 876 last fall), so too have domestic student enrolments: there are 590 more students from Canada this fall than in the fall of 2017.

 




TOP STORIES

RELATED STORIES

Sign up for weekly stories




Trending

Communications student standing outside the Centre for Learning building at the Kelowna campus
Meet Ruth Gabriela Melo Flores

April 4, 2023

Q: What's your name? A: Ruth Gabriela Melo Flores Q: What's your hometown? A: Quito – Ecuador – South America Q: How did you end up at Okanagan College? A: Well, I studied for a bachelor's degree in Law in Ecuador. Then, I worked for a while and got my Master's degree in Government and Culture of Organizations at the University of Pamplona.  When I returned to my country, professional opportunities arose for me. I mean, a Master's degree improved my career. Spain helped ...

Read more...
Animation student
Artistic students design future careers in animation

June 7, 2022

Grads of Okanagan College’s Animation Diploma program are finding their skills have never been in higher demand. First- and second-year students showed samples of their artwork and demo reels to industry partners at OC’s annual Animation Industry Night on May 17. “Lots of the work was very professional,” says James Wood, Chair of Okanagan College’s Animation Department. “Our program is short, but intense. The instructors make sure the students have a realistic understanding of what they need do to succeed in a competitive and demanding...

Read more...
JAMK campus
OC Business students embrace international study again

May 30, 2022

Business students from Okanagan College are once again able to travel to Jyväskylä, Finland to experience an international summer school at the JAMK University of Applied Sciences.  Finland’s education system is widely regarded as one of the best in the world.  OC Business Professor Blair Baldwin, who has taught Services Design at JAMK for several summers, says working in Finland has helped him innovate and create new teaching methodologies. “JAMK employs experiential learning across its curriculum,” he says. “They stress cri...

Read more...
Enactus 2022
Enactus Okanagan College tops the field, sets sights on national championships

May 27, 2022

Okanagan College students will once again be competing for the Canadian title after qualifying for the Enactus National Exposition with a first-place finish in their league during the semi-final round. Enactus teams at post-secondary institutions across Canada competed virtually earlier this month, and Okanagan College scooped up top position in the TD Entrepreneurship Challenge, and runner-up in the Scotiabank Climate Action Challenge for the Unusually Good Food Co. project. It also included national runner-up in Shaw and RBC accelerator...

Read more...