DWC welcomes record number of students in Class of ’09

(Nashua, NH) -- It was standing room only when family and parents gathered in the Collings Auditorium of Daniel Webster College (DWC) recently, waiting for the official welcoming ceremony for the Class of ’09, the largest in the college’s history.

Sean Ryan, DWC’s dean of admissions and financial assistance, led 239 students into the auditorium accompanied by a bagpiper from the Ancient Order of Hibernians.  Enrollment in the Class of ’09 represents a 17 percent increase over last year’s enrollment, and more than a 40 percent increase over the last two years.

“We are delighted that the largest number of students in our history selected Daniel Webster College as their educational community,” Ryan said. 

“We are even more pleased that the academic caliber of students is also the highest in our history. The grade point average is at 3.1 (on a 4.0 system), and the average SAT score of the class is 1076,” he added.

The national average for SAT scoring is 1028, with the New Hampshire average at 1050, one of the highest state averages in the country.

Ryan attributes the introduction of the college’s baccalaureate programs in mechanical and aeronautical engineering as one of the primary reasons for the increased enrollment.

“Although the four-year program was approved just in November, which is late in the recruiting cycle, our engineering enrollment is up 150 percent,” he said.  The college’s strong reputation for its associate degrees in engineering, along with the commitment of the engineering faculty, who met with every potential student, was cited by Ryan as reasons for the success start of the four-year program.

“Here at DWC the entire college community is involved in the recruiting process, especially when prospective students are visiting campus,” Ryan explained.  “They expect to see people from the admissions office, but when they can sit down with the faculty and staff, they can see what our community is all about.”

After Ryan welcomed the Class of ’09, the college’s new president, Dr. Robert E. Myers, greeted the class and their families, saying, “This class is very special for me – I have only been here seven weeks, and you are my first entering class, as well as the largest entering class in the College’s history.  My personal and professional interest is in your success.”  

He added, “We are a strong community here at Daniel Webster College, and everyone is committed to your success. You keep your end of the bargain, and we will do everything we can to help you persist and persevere.  I look forward to being with all of you at the end of four years when you will be my first graduating class.”

Of the 239 students in the Class of ’09, 10 students are from Nashua, another 30 are from the surrounding communities, with a total of 77 students from the Granite State.  Although the majority of the class is from New England and the East Coast, students hail from as far away as Taiwan, California, and Colorado.

Daniel Webster College, a small, student-centered institution, features nationally ranked degree programs in aviation, as well as innovative programs in business and management, computer science, information technology, mechanical and aeronautical engineering, sport management, and social science.

Through its division of Graduate and Continuing Studies, the college offers an accelerated evening MBA program, a new online MBA in Aviation Management beginning in January, the EXCEL degree completion program, including a new Air Traffic Management program that starts this fall, continuing studies, and a variety of certificate and distance learning programs. For more information, visit www.dwc.edu or call 603-577-6000.