Student Population at Western Carolina

Total Enrollment

11,635

Undergraduate

9,956

Graduate

1,679

Online Enrollment

2,858

Men Students

4,797

Women Students

6,838

For the academic year 2023-2024, a total of 11,635 students have enrolled at Western Carolina University - 9,956 undergraduate and 1,679 graduate.

By gender, 4,797 male and 6,838 female students are attending Western Carolina University. By attendance status, there are 8,896 full-time students and 2,739 part-time students.

The number of students at Western Carolina University is relatively small compared to Public, 4-Years Colleges in North Carolina. Compared to similar schools in rankings such as Campbell University and Elon University, its population is very large (average population is 4,451).

Western Carolina University offers online degree/certificate programs and 2,858 students enrolled in online programs.

*Gender, Race, Age, and Online population based on 2022-2023 data.

Enrollment Comparison Chart

The below chart compares the student population between Western Carolina University and similar colleges.

Enrollment by Gender/Attending Status

By gender, there are 4,797 male and 6,838 female students attending Western Carolina. The male-to-female student ratio is 0.70 to 1 and the ratio is similar to national average (the national average is 0.75 to 1).

The following table and chart show the student population by gender and attending status at Western Carolina.

Population by Gender/Attending Status at Western Carolina
	Total	Full-time	Part-time
Total	9,956	8,031	1,925
Men	4,275	3,526	749
Women	5,681	4,505	1,176

Population by Gender/Attending Status at Western Carolina
	Total	Full-time	Part-time
Total	1,679	865	814
Men	522	249	273
Women	1,157	616	541

Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity

By race/ethnicity, there are 8,905 White students (76.54%) and 891 Hispanic students (7.66%) at Western Carolina University(top 2 most races/ethnicities). The following table summarizes the population diversity by race at Western Carolina University.

Population by Race/Ethnicity at Western Carolina University
	Total	Men	Women
American Indian or Alaska Native	96	39	57
Asian	130	56	74
Black or African American	618	288	330
Hispanic	789	313	476
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander	14	7	7
White	7,607	3,276	4,331
Two or More Races	358	151	207
Race/Ethnicity Unknown	118	55	63
Total	9,956	4,275	5,681

Population by Race/Ethnicity at Western Carolina University
	Total	Men	Women
American Indian or Alaska Native	13	7	6
Asian	18	5	13
Black or African American	124	42	82
Hispanic	102	31	71
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander	1	0	1
White	1,298	398	900
Two or More Races	49	16	33
Race/Ethnicity Unknown	3	2	1
Total	1,679	522	1,157

Enrollment by Student Age

By age, there are 8,285 students whose age under twenty five and 2,354 students whose age is over thirty years old at Western Carolina University.

Especially, 120 students are younger than eighteen and 4 students are older than sixty five.

The following table and chart show the student population by student age at Western Carolina University.

Population by Student Age at Western Carolina University
	Total	Men	Women
Total	9,956	4,275	5,681
Under 18	120	35	85
18-19	3,236	1,363	1,873
20-21	3,134	1,369	1,765
22-24	1,362	699	663
25-29	590	243	347
30-34	474	186	288
35-39	359	148	211
40-49	495	179	316
50-64	183	52	131
65 and over	3	1	2
Total	9,956	4,275	5,681

Population by Student Age at Western Carolina University
	Total	Men	Women
Total	1,679	522	1,157
18-19	1	0	1
20-21	44	7	37
22-24	388	108	280
25-29	406	126	280
30-34	231	73	158
35-39	195	64	131
40-49	284	96	188
50-64	129	48	81
65 and over	1	0	1
Total	1,679	522	1,157

Online Student Population

At Western Carolina University, 6,340 students (54.49% of total enrollment) take online classes to get their degrees. Among them, 2,858 students enrolled exclusively in online classes (i.e. no off-line attendance required) and others are taking online courses with off-line courses. The following tables describe the number of students who enrolled in one or more online courses.

By location of enrolled students, 2,631 students live in North Carolina where Western Carolina University is located in and 168 students have enrolled from other states.

Online Student Population
	Total	Undergraduate	Graduate
Total	11,635	9,956	1,679
Enrolled Exclusively in Online Classes	2,858	2,168	690
Enrolled Some in Online Classes	3,482	3,073	409
Not Enrolled in Online Classes	5,295	4,715	580

Online Student Population by Student Location
	Total	Undergraduate	Graduate
Total (Enrolled Excl.)	2,858	2,168	690
North Carolina Residents	2,631	2,019	612
Other State in U.S.	168	110	58
Outside of U.S.	4	2	2
Unknown	55	37	18