Notre Dame at the Turn of the Decade

At the turn of every year, people typically take some time to reflect on the past 12 months. It’s a time for annual reviews, top-10 lists and highlight reels.

Some of the highlights at Notre Dame College in 2010 included: the full accreditation of the nursing program; alumna Marye Anne Payne Fox ’69 receiving the National Medal of Science from President Barack Obama; the creation of the Student Success Center; the launching of the Finn Center for Adult, Graduate and Professional Programs; the introduction of an honors program, the wrestling team’s national championship; and another year of record enrollment.

But we have already told you about these accomplishments. Now, as the College heads into a new decade, we thought we would use this time of year to give you a brief overview of what our institution has become and what our student body looks like.

For example, did you know that since the College went co-ed in 2001, men now outnumber women on campus? You might also not know that about half of our students are athletes and that nearly one-third are minority students.

The most popular among our 30 undergraduate majors are nursing, sports management, management, early childhood education, psychology and criminal justice.

Our full-time enrollment grew by 11.5 percent over the past year and by an astonishing 315 percent since 2001. Nationwide, Notre Dame has the highest growth rate of enrolled first-time degree-seeking undergraduate students among 204 institutions with a Carnegie classification of “private, not-for-profit, baccalaureate colleges--diverse fields,” according to doctoral studies by Matt Whelan of Stony Brook University. 

Below you will find a brief summary of the most important data about Notre Dame. As the College heads into a new decade, President Dr. Andrew P. Roth, the board of trustees, faculty and staff are aware that these numbers are irrelevant unless we maintain the mission of the institution, which is grounded in the tradition of the Sisters of Notre Dame and educates a diverse population in the liberal arts for personal, professional and global responsibility.

General Information

Traditional Student Profile

• 45% are women
• 55% are men
• 55% are Catholic
• 28% of the student body consists of minority students
• 55% are student athletes 
• 79% retention rate
• 81% of freshmen applicants are accepted for admission
• 68% returning freshmen
• 51% graduate in five years
• 53% live on campus
• 15 states and 10 foreign countries represented

Academic Programs

Notre Dame College offers majors in nearly 30 disciplines. Our associate, bachelor and master degrees include outstanding programs in education, business and science. Weekend, adult and online classes are also available.

• Business Administration:
  Accounting, Human Resources Development, Information Systems, International Business, Management, Sports Management, Marketing
   
• Arts & Humanities:
  Communication, English, Graphic Communication, Graphic Design, History, Center for Intelligence Studies, Criminal Justice, Pre-Law English, Pre-Law History, Public Administration, Public Relations, Studio Art
   
• Nursing
   
• Education:
  Early Childhood (pre-K through grade 3), Middle Childhood (grades 4 through 9), Adolescent/Young Adult (grades 7 through 12), Mild Moderate Intervention Specialist, Visual Arts (K through grade 12)
   
• Science & Mathematics:
  Biology, Pre-Med Biology, Chemistry, Pre-Med Chemistry, Binary Program in Engineering, Environmental Science, Mathematics, Psychology
   

Academic Support Center for Students with Learning Differences (ASC):
The ASC has been recognized nationally by Milestones (a national organization on Autism/Asperger’s), the International Dyslexia Association, and the Learning Disabilities Foundation of America.

Top Undergraduate Majors

• Pre-Nursing
• Sports Management
• Management
• Early Childhood Education
• Psychology
• Criminal Justice

Top Undergraduate Degrees

• Business
• Education
• Nursing
• Science

Accreditation

• The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools
• National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU)
• The American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education
• National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE)
• Ohio Board of Regents

Financial Aid

• Federal financial assistance includes: Federal Pell Grants, the Federal Academic Competitive Grant, the Federal Smart Grant, the Federal Supplemental Education Grant, the Federal Teach Grant, Federal Work Study, Federal Perkins Loans, Federal Student Loan Programs; the State of Ohio’s College Opportunity Grant (OCOG); Notre Dame College grants and scholarships.
• 98% receive need-based aid; 90% receive non-need-base aid; Comprehensive financial assistance totals more than $25 million.