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Lindsey Wilson University Enrollment's Surges by Nearly 8%

Increase in new students raises university's enrollment to 3,548, third largest in school history.

by Duane Bonifer

COLUMBIA, Ky. (09/22/2026) — Bolstered by one of the largest classes of new students in school history, Lindsey Wilson University's 2026 fall enrollment is 3,548.

That's a nearly 8% increase over last fall's enrollment of 3,298 students, and it's the third largest overall enrollment in university history.

"This is such wonderful news for Lindsey Wilson University because it's an affirmation that the Lindsey Wilson mission is strong and valued by the current generation of college students," said Lindsey Wilson President William T. Luckey Jr. "It's also good news for Columbia-Adair County because Lindsey Wilson has an annual economic impact of more than $90 million on our local economy."

Although many colleges and universities are experiencing declines in either overall or new student enrollment, Lindsey Wilson enrolled a total of 532 new students -- freshmen and transfer students -- this fall, which is an increase over last fall's new student enrollment.

This year's new students come to Lindsey Wilson from 27 Kentucky counties, 29 U.S. states and 35 countries. Overall, Lindsey Wilson's student body has students enrolled from 96 Kentucky counties, 45 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, and 63 foreign countries.

"The broad geographical diversity of our student body is a reflection of our university's talented and hard-working admissions team members," said Lindsey Wilson Executive Vice President Dean Adams. "The staff members in our offices of Admissions and Educational Outreach do an excellent job building relationships with students and their family members to help them find a place in our learning community."

Lindsey Wilson also saw a nearly 18% increase in the number of graduate students enrolled, as its enrollment swelled from 1,547 to 1,819. Lindsey Wilson now offers master's degrees in business administration, counseling, cybersecurity management, data science, machine learning and artificial intelligence, and technology management, and a doctor of philosophy in counselor education and supervision.

"Our graduate programs continue to meet the needs of working adults, and they are offered in a format that is convenient to their schedules," said Adams.

The university also has more students living this year in residence halls than it did last year on its A.P. White Campus, an increase from 980 to 999 students.

"We were able to comfortably house all of our students this year, but our residence halls are nearly full," said Dean of Students Chris Schmidt. "A full campus might mean that the lines are sometimes a little longer for meals in the Roberta D. Cranmer Dining & Conference Center and there are fewer parking spaces next to classroom buildings, but more students living in residence halls makes for a dynamic, living-learning environment on campus."

Lindsey Wilson University is a vibrant liberal arts university in Columbia, Kentucky. Founded in 1903 and affiliated with The United Methodist Church, the mission of Lindsey Wilson is to serve the educational needs of students by providing a living-learning environment within an atmosphere of active caring and Christian concern where every student, every day, learns and grows and feels like a real human being. Lindsey Wilson offers 30 undergraduate majors, five graduate programs and a doctoral program. The university's 29 intercollegiate varsity athletic teams have won more than 120 team and individual national championships.

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Lindsey Wilson University’s 532 new students help the school reach a fall enrollment of 3,548 students, a nearly 8% increase over last fall’s enrollment and the third largest overall enrollment in university history.

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