Fall Enrollment Up 10 Percent at Maine’s Community Colleges

AUGUSTA, ME — Fall enrollment is up 10% at Maine’s community colleges, breaking 20,000 students for the first time and marking another historic high enrollment for the seven colleges.

“This is what happens when you intentionally and strategically make college affordable, relevant, and accessible,” said David Daigler, president of the Maine Community College System (MCCS). “This last year has been a period of tremendous growth for us, made possible by the dedication and excellence of our incredible employees and partners. Together, we’re expanding opportunities for Mainers through Free College, early college, job skills training in a breadth of industries, and excellent transfer pathways to four-year colleges.”

“We’re grateful to see this surge of interest in pursuing an education at Maine’s community colleges,” Daigler said.

Fall enrollment was 21,385 students, compared to 19,477 students last year.

Enrollment has been boosted by the Free College program, which was proposed by Governor Janet Mills in early 2022 and enacted by the Legislature a few months later. It covers 100% of community college tuition and fees for recent high school graduates.

“We’re hopeful that Governor Mills and the legislature will support the continuation of Free College, but the clock is ticking,” Daigler said. “This year’s seniors are the last to qualify for this groundbreaking program. We strongly urge all high school seniors and their families to make plans now to start their college journey tuition-free.”

Fall enrollment has also been boosted by an increase in high school students taking early college courses, increased capacity in popular academic programs, and expanded hours with more night and weekend classes. There’s also an increase in returning students from last year’s record-breaking fall enrollment of 19,477 students.

The increase in community college students is having a ripple effect, with the University of Maine System (UMS) reporting a 39% increase in undergraduate transfer students.

That MCCS-to-UMS transfer pipeline is expected to increase significantly in the coming years due to the historic Transfer ME agreement reached between the two systems this summer. The agreement guarantees automatic admission – and eliminates UMS application paperwork or fees – for MCCS graduates in transfer programs to seamlessly continue their education at one or more of Maine’s public universities.

Official fall enrollment figures do not include short-term workforce training students. More than 26,000 students have taken short-term workforce training classes since January 2022. Some of those students use short-term workforce training as an on-ramp to pursue a certificate or degree program, which in turn boosts official enrollment figures.

This fall begins the third academic year with the Free College Scholarship. Since it launched in Fall 2022, 17,132 Free College-eligible students have enrolled. Details about the Free College Scholarship are here.