Fall enrollment at Northwest College is on the rise with a 4% increase in both total headcount and total credits enrolled, according to early numbers from President Lisa Watson.

The number of students considered to be full time is up by 1% while the number of part time students has risen by 6%.

One of the largest growth areas at the moment is dual enrollment among the area’s high school students. According to the numbers, dual and concurrent is up 7% in total number of students and up 12% in the number of credits being taken by students.

Watson cited the legislative environment for the rise.

“With the expansion of who classes are being offered to, both through better accessibility for kids in homeschooling programs and school districts widening enrollment opportunities to underclassmen, dual enrollment is pretty big right now across the state,” Watson said.

While dual enrollment is up, concurrent enrollment, both at Northwest and across the state, is struggling. According to numbers provided during Watson’s state of the college address in August, dual enrollment at Northwest saw an 11% increase while concurrent enrollment dropped 14%.

The numbers are even more stark across Wyoming, with a 16% headcount increase in dual enrollment while concurrent enrollment plummeted 23%.

Watson attributes much of the decrease in concurrent enrollment to potential loss in individual teachers in different districts who manage a large chunk of managed credit hours.

Dual enrollment classes are courses at the college providing both high school and college level credit for students,  whereas concurrent enrollment classes are college-level courses taught by high school teachers directly at the high school with the approval of the participating college.

Despite the shaky start in August, as of September 6, concurrent enrollment headcount and concurrent full time credit count at NWC are up 7% from where they were in the Fall 2025 semester. That number will continue to fluctuate as the semester continues.

The numbers from other community colleges across the state show mixed results, with schools like Casper College and Laramie County Community College up roughly 5% in their headcount while schools in smaller cities such as Eastern Wyoming College and Central Wyoming College down roughly 8%.

Although numbers for international graduate students have suffered a 4.3% decrease across the nation’s four-year institutions this last spring, Northwest’s international student program remains steady around 100 students with retention among those enrolled last year staying high.

During the state of the college address in August, Watson hit on nationwide enrollment hovering around a 1% increase in total and a 3.1% increase in community college enrollment. Within that number, there has been a 10% increase in students seeking certifications.

Despite the increases in enrollment, residence hall occupancy remains an issue, being around 30 students short of optimal numbers. Watson noted high cost of living expenses for families in the area making it more desirable for students to remain at home rather than on campus.

While news around this semester’s enrollment numbers is giving some optimism, the looming threat of the enrollment cliff, or the demographic decline in traditional college-age students following a drop in birth rates in the wake of the 2008 recession, has administrators like Watson still concerned for the future.

“Looking at the charts, I have to wonder what we can control within the trend,” Watson said. “If we have a certain percentage of high school graduates in the Big Horn Basin deciding not going to college after graduating then that’s a group of people we need to find a way to encourage to take the opportunity moving forward.”