Someone asked about enrollment at the University of Minnesota. It’s up slightly at the flagship Twin Cities campus and in the system overall. Most of the satellite campuses are expanding or at least holding their own except Morris and Duluth which are down slightly. The flagship isn’t so much into expanding enrollment, but it’s become much more selective in recent years—a trend at many public flagships.
Schools in the Minnesota State University system are generally less selective than those in the University of Minnesota system, and the Minnesota State University schools are mostly spread out across the state in small towns. The Twin Cities metro area has a diverse, dynamic, thriving economy and an expanding population. Much of rural and small town Minnesota has an aging and shrinking population, and economies that are struggling. “Regional” state schools draw students primarily from their own region. Demographic trends mean they have fewer HS graduates to draw from. Economic trends suggest that perhaps fewer HS grads in those regions foresee an economic payoff from attending college.