Larry Griffin, President | Mid-South Christian College
Larry Griffin, President | Mid-South Christian College
Of the 25 institutions in the county, eight provided detailed enrollment data at the time, including Concorde Career College-Memphis, Mid-South Christian College and Rhodes College.
At least 23,556 people applied to Shelby County colleges in the 2022-23 school year.
NCES data shows that among them, around 44,124 students enrolled in the universities, including 35,055 in undergraduate and 9,069 in graduate programs. In total 5.3% of undergraduates transferred from another college or university.
The reported undergraduate student body is comprised mostly of Black or African American (44.5%) and white (34.3%) students.
Among the institutions that provided disclosed enrollment data, University of Memphis stood out with the largest enrollment at the time, welcoming 21,917 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.
NCES shows that enrollment data was not available for five institutions in Shelby County, including Relay Graduate School of Education - Memphis, Southern College of Optometry and Memphis Theological Seminary.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mid-South Christian College | 8 | 8 | 17 |
| Southern College of Optometry | -- | -- | -- |
| Massage Institute of Memphis | -- | -- | 15 |
| Strayer University-Tennessee | -- | -- | 2,882 |
| Vibe Barber College | -- | -- | 67 |
| Concorde Career College-Memphis | 625 | 594 | 1,317 |
| Harding School of Theology | -- | -- | -- |
| Strayer University-Shelby Oaks Campus | -- | -- | -- |
| Christian Brothers University | 877 | 763 | 1,934 |
| Southwest Tennessee Community College | -- | -- | 6,443 |
| Remington College-Memphis Campus | -- | -- | 344 |
| Relay Graduate School of Education - Memphis | -- | -- | -- |
| William R Moore College of Technology | -- | -- | 361 |
| The University of Tennessee Health Science Center | -- | -- | 3,139 |
| Gould's Academy | -- | -- | 157 |
| Baptist Health Sciences University | 281 | 115 | 797 |
| Memphis Theological Seminary | -- | -- | -- |
| Le Moyne-Owen College | 451 | 451 | 609 |
| Visible Music College | 294 | 59 | 230 |
| Rhodes College | 5,253 | 2,837 | 2,008 |
| University of Memphis | 15,767 | 14,979 | 21,917 |
| Empire Beauty School-E Memphis | -- | -- | 162 |
| Tennessee College of Applied Technology-Memphis | -- | -- | 1,547 |
| Gould's Academy | -- | -- | 174 |
| Health-Tech Institute of Memphis | -- | -- | 4 |
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