Enrollment at the University of Kentucky is now pushing 40,000 students, with a preliminary fall 2025 enrollment of 38,719, UK President Eli Capilouto announced, which represents an increase from last fall’s enrollment of 35,951.
“Our preliminary numbers speak about who we are and what we do in support of our mission in advancing Kentucky,” Capilouto said. “More importantly, I know we all eagerly think about the generational change those students, when they leave the university, will make possible for communities throughout the commonwealth.”
UK’s student body represents every county in Kentucky, all 50 states across the U.S. and more than 100 countries. Additionally, UK continues to make strides in recruiting and educating, and ultimately presenting diplomas, to more Kentuckians than ever before.
Here are the details of the preliminary enrollment report.
- First-time, first-year enrollment for Fall 2025 is 7,012 — up from 6,513 last fall.
- For the first time, more than 4,000 first-year students are from Kentucky.
- Nearly 1,900 students — another record number — are first-generation. That’s about 27 percent of the class, up almost a full percentage point over last fall.
- Overall preliminary fall enrollment is 38,719 with nearly 28,000 undergraduate students.
- More than 8,100 students are living on campus — over 270 more than last year. This will increase next year when a new residence hall opens, allowing an additional nearly 700 students to live and learn in the campus community.
Along with attracting students from Kentucky and beyond, UK is also graduating students at record numbers.
- UK’s preliminary six-year graduation rate is now at nearly 72% — also a record.
- UK’s five-year graduation rate for the first time is nearly 72% as well.
- Initial estimates of UK’s four-year graduation rate of about 60% are as high as the six-year graduation rate was 15 years ago.
This fall, enrollment in UK’s health care colleges has increased, according to preliminary figures. More than 7,600 students are enrolled in the Colleges of Dentistry, Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy and Public Health. For example, enrollment in the College of Public Health has increased by more than 18 percentage points since last fall.
“Part of the success in those growing numbers is my belief that at the University of Kentucky, we must do more and be more for our state by helping to create a healthier Kentucky for generations to come,” Capilouto said.
By Tom Latek, Kentucky Today
