NW Missouri Times

Nodaway County's two universities admitted a total of 86% of applicants for fall 2022, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Of those who were admitted, 19.1% enrolled.

All two institutions in the county provided detailed enrollment data at the time.

At least 6,881 people applied to Nodaway County colleges in the 2022-23 school year.

NCES data shows that among them, around 8,532 students enrolled in the universities, including 5,335 in undergraduate and 3,197 in graduate programs. Only 3.7% of undergraduates transferred from another college or university.

The reported undergraduate student body is comprised mostly of white (81.9%) and Hispanic (5.1%) students.

Among the institutions that provided disclosed enrollment data, Northwest Missouri State University stood out with the largest enrollment at the time, welcoming 8,505 students.

U.S. college enrollment has been in a downward trend since peaking at around 18.1 million students in 2010. Recent increases offered some relief, but experts project a steeper decline in 2025.

This decline is likely due to two main factors. First, the pool of young adults is shrinking as birth rates have fallen nearly 23% between 2007 and 2022. Second, the rising cost of higher education, including skyrocketing student loan debt. A 2023 Wall Street Journal report shows that more than half of Americans think a four-year degree is not worth the cost.

Some educational data is based on estimates. Shifting demographics among student populations can sometimes result in gender totals which do not equal 100%.

Institution	# of Applicants	# of Admitted Students	Total Enrollment
Northwest Missouri State University	6,877	5,914	8,505
Conception Seminary College	4	4	27