Trent applications up 17%

As convocation ceremonies wrap up Friday, Trent University is touting its high rates of applications to the university, first choice acceptances by students and employment rate by its graduates. Trent leads the province for percentage increase in first choice acceptances from high school students, up by 24.7 per cent as of the deadline, according to data released Tuesday by the Ontario Universities Application Centres. Trent has also led all Ontario universities every month for the second year in a row for percentage increase in applications, on average up by 17 per cent, the release states. Students accepting their offer to Trent have increased again for the coming fall term, with 14.5 per cent more high school student confirmations overall. The system was up by just 1 per cent as of the June 1 OUAC deadline for students to accept their offer. It’s the third year in a row Trent has had enrolment growth. Trent cites several new programs introduced in recent years for attracting more applications including social work, pre-medical emphasis, a law and arts degree and specializations such as accounting, finance, marketing and entrepreneurship in the School of Business at Trent. The recently released 2015 Ontario Graduate Survey shows Trent’s graduate employment rates to be among the best in the province, according to a release from Trent. Overall, within two years of graduating, Trent students recorded an employment rate of 95.41 per cent, one of the highest graduate employment rates in Ontario. Trent graduates also recorded an employment rate of 87.4 per cent six months after convocation. Both numbers exceeded the system average of 87 per cent (six months) and 93 per cent (two years). The 2015 National Survey of Student Engagement shows that Trent matches the provincial average in the majority of categories.