UNC Charlotte broke its own record this academic year for number of students enrolled. The university expected 28,700 students to be enrolled this semester. In the last ten years, UNC Charlotte experienced the fastest growth of any UNC-system campus.
In 1999, the student body population totaled 16,950. The university expects a future growth double that number – 32,500 students. This number includes all students, including those in graduate, undergraduate and doctoral programs.
A UNC system report showed UNC’s 17 campuses saw growth in the minority population. Last fall, undergraduate Latino enrollment grew by nine percent and undergraduate multi-racial enrollment grew by 10 percent.
To keep up with the growth, UNC Charlotte has multiple construction projects underway.
The design for a 143,500 square foot health and wellness center is being finalized and its newest residential building, Levine Hall, is expected to be finished this fall. It will house up to 435 students. With the approval of the Connect NC Bond this past spring, $90 million was allocated for the construction of a new science building. Since the current science building opened in 1985, enrollment at UNC Charlotte has grown by 142 percent, said Chancellor Philip Dubois.
But there have been some concerns from students with UNC Charlotte’s record breaking population growth. Crime around the university area has been on the rise and CMPD has extra officers patrolling the area.
“It is [car break-ins] almost 20 percent higher than any crime we have on a weekly basis,” said Captain Brian Foley, the University City Commander of the CMPD.
In June of this year, a federal report showed that UNC Charlotte’s campus, along with Brown and Harvard University, was ranked top ten in the country for reported rapes. In 2014, there were 32 reported rapes on campus.
Another concern some students have is class size. With the student body population growing, it is reasonable to assume class size will grow as well. But Maureen Sanders, a senior Communication studies student, says that larger classes don’t take away from her experience as a student.
“I don’t think it’s a bad thing, because larger classes have labs that are a smaller size. That way, you can get that more intimate setting in the lab,” said Sanders.