There has been a 29 percent increase in applications from last year at UConn’s Avery Point campus, according to The New London Day. Having previously received 194 applications in 2014, this year the number has jumped up to 251 applications.
There has also been an increase in registering off-campus apartments as well. The campus has hired a passenger-van as well as reconsidered the shuttle’s schedule in order to cater to the students living off campus without any modes of transportation.
The school was previously known as a commuter school that eventually transferred students into the main campus. This is simply not the case anymore. The campus is gaining a focus on marine science and maritime studies due to its proximity to Long Island Sound – a factor that also reinforces its sailing club.
Avery Point offers many incentives for its students: the ability to save money, smaller classes and proximity to home are just a few. There are an increasing number of students that seem to prefer to stay at a regional campus for as long as they possibly can. Avery Point is now able to provide enough classes for the completion of certain programs in four years. Therefore many students have the option of staying at that campus to earn a degree or move to UConn’s Storrs campus.
This in turn helps relieve the stress the main campus is currently feeling. With UConn’s attempt to increase its freshman statistics and admitting a larger student body each year, there are inevitable infrastructural problems, or lack thereof. Transportation needs to be amped up, and certain amenities are not sufficiently provided.
The gym, for one, is taking the most criticism with the recent change of BodyWise to the already too-small recreation center. Rather than finding a more suitable place for BodyWise, such as the Shippee Pit, UConn decided to pack all the weightlifting equipment into one room, leaving little room leftover. Simply put, UConn is not quite prepared for the number of students it presently houses.
The current state of affairs at the main campus has students welcoming the news of the regional campuses being able to accommodate more students. This situation allows UConn to improve the quality of student life on the main campus, while not having the added pressure of increasing number of transfers moving to the main campus. This may even call for an increased focus on the regional campuses.
Making the regional campuses better may reduce the flow of students attending the main campus, allowing UConn more time to make necessary improvements.