Trend does not hit Unity

BY COLIN HICKEY
Staff Writer

08/03/2009

UNITY -- Unity College has bucked the trend of declining admission applications experienced by so many private schools this year.
Applications are up 7 percent at a time when some private institutions are seeing double-digit decreases.

Unity has beefed up its teaching staff as well, having hired three new faculty members.

Vice President for College Advancement Robert Constantine credited Unity's specialized curriculum and relatively low tuition as the primary reason for the increase.

"Our environmental mission is hot right now," Constantine said, "and this generation of students tends to be very activist-minded. And we are cheaper than many private colleges."

Unity's comprehensive fee (tuition, board and fees) is about $30,000.

Colby College, the prestigious liberal arts school in Waterville, charges $50,000.

Constantine said he expects Unity's enrollment will increase from 550 to 575 students.

Unity officials had feared the recession might have a negative impact on admissions.

"We actually budgeted very conservatively," Constantine said, "on the assumption that it would be a tight year in higher education."

But interest in an environmental education, he said, proved to be strong enough to overcome financial hurdles.

Constantine said Unity is also seeing a higher retention rate among its student body. He said about 67 percent of last year's freshman class is returning.

For a rural school with a limited number of majors, that is impressive, he said.

"And we have no reason to think this is an anomaly," he said. "The trend has been upward all along -- at least for the last five years."