The Chronicle of Higher Education released a list in August 2014 that shows Anderson University is one of the fastest-growing private universities in America. The publication examined growth in U.S. colleges and universities between the years 2002 and 2012, ranking the top 20 schools in six categories, ranging from public doctoral institutions to two-year schools. In the category of “Private Baccalaureate Institutions,” Anderson ranked eighteenth in the U.S.
In the period examined by The Chronicle, AU grew from 1,639 students to 2,922 or 78 percent. The trend has continued for Anderson as the university welcomed it’s largest freshman class in history over in August 2014. Six hundred and fifty-seven freshmen and 145 transfer students combined to add 802 new enrollees to the campus. The total enrollment for the university is expected to top the 3,100 mark this fall, virtually doubling the enrollment from 2002.
Anderson was the only private university in South Carolina named to the Chronicle list. Only one public institution, Coastal Carolina University, was cited among public institutions.