MOBILE, Ala. — Three colleges sit within a few miles of one another in Mobile, and all three released fall enrollment figures this month. The numbers point in slightly different directions, and together they say something about where the region’s higher education market is going.
The University of South Alabama enrolled 14,157 students this fall — a decrease of 128 students, or 0.8%, from last year, according to data from the Alabama Commission on Higher Education. Spring Hill College reported a 45.5% increase in freshman enrollment. The University of Mobile reported a 6% increase across all programs and a record freshman class, up 28% from the previous year.
South Alabama: A Dip That Isn’t a Reversal
USA’s small decline arrives on top of several years of growth, and administrators framed the fall report around the trend line rather than the single-year number.
This is the third consecutive year the university’s enrollment has surpassed 14,000 students. Final enrollment numbers will change later this year, as they typically do once late registrations and withdrawals are reconciled.
“The last few years have established an incredible trajectory for the University of South Alabama,” said Andi Kent, USA’s executive vice president and provost. “Our fall 2026 enrollment report shows we continue on that path — with high academic standards, gains in retention and an unwavering commitment to student success.”
The retention reference is worth pausing on, because it is the metric that does the most work in a university’s enrollment total. Recruiting a large freshman class produces a one-year bump. Keeping those students enrolled through to graduation is what compounds into sustained totals — and a school can post a slight decline in a given fall while improving the underlying retention picture.
Context from the longer record complicates any simple reading. USA’s enrollment increased 2% from 2024 to 2025, according to ACHE data. But since 2016, enrollment at the Mobile-based university is down about 13%.
The incoming class carries strong academic markers. USA welcomed its fourth-largest freshman class, with a cumulative high school GPA of 3.79, and the largest Honors College enrollment in the university’s history at 390 students.
“To the students we recruit, we make promises about the value of their education as a first-class ticket to a brighter future. We make commitments, and we deliver on those commitments,” said USA President Jo Bonner.
A Housing Record, and $40 Million Spent to Meet It
The most concrete evidence of demand at South is not in the enrollment column. It is in the residence halls.
The university has an all-time high number of students living on campus — 3,478 residents, just under 3,500. To handle it, USA opened a $40 million on-campus apartment complex this spring housing roughly 1,000 students, now renamed SouthPaw Village, with upgrades underway.
“Welcoming one of our largest and the most academically talented freshman classes, alongside record housing numbers, shows that students and families recognize the return on a South education,” Bonner said.
Record on-campus residency alongside a slight overall enrollment dip suggests a shift in composition rather than contraction — a student body weighted more toward full-time residential undergraduates and somewhat less toward commuters and part-time enrollees.
Spring Hill College: A 45.5% Freshman Jump in a Bicentennial Year
Just across the street, Spring Hill College is welcoming what it calls its bicentennial class of 2030, with freshman enrollment up 45.5% compared with last year’s figures.
A percentage increase of that size at a small private college reflects a smaller base than USA’s numbers — but it also represents the kind of turnaround that changes an institution’s finances, since tuition-dependent private colleges feel every point of enrollment movement directly.
The college is finalizing construction on the Annette N. Shelby Health and Science Innovation Center, expected to open at the beginning of next semester. The building will be used first by the 2030 freshman class, as the school marks its 200th anniversary.
Students said the combination of growth and construction has changed the mood on campus.
“As a senior, the new Health and Science building is very promising. I’ve always been hopeful that Spring Hill could return to its old, great ways, and with this increase in enrollment and campus improvements, we are definitely headed that direction,” said Daniel Saye, a Spring Hill senior.
“Starting this new school year with so much progress on our new Health and Science Innovation Center, along with so many new faces on campus, has fostered an energy of hope and excitement on campus,” said Anna Kate Driver, another senior. “I can’t wait to see how the school continues to flourish and grow in these coming months and beyond!”
University of Mobile: Growth Across the Board
The University of Mobile reported a 6% increase across all programs for the fall 2026 semester, along with a record-breaking freshman class up 28% from the previous year.
“We’re grateful for this growth and, more importantly, for the opportunity it represents to welcome more students into a Christ-centered community where they can discover their God-given gifts, pursue their calling and prepare to serve others through their chosen professions,” said Ashlyn Mitchell, UM’s director of communication.
Mitchell argued the school’s significance to the region extends past its own enrollment column, particularly in two fields where the Gulf Coast has persistent workforce needs.
“Healthcare is one example. Mobile is a regional center for medical care, and UM prepares the next generation of healthcare professionals through programs in nursing, nurse anesthesia, athletic training and other health-related fields,” Mitchell said.
The second is teaching. “UM graduates also help meet the region’s need for educators,” she said. “Many serve in schools throughout Mobile and the Gulf Coast, including Mobile County Public Schools, Alabama’s largest public school system, which serves approximately 52,000 students across 90 schools.”
What Students Mean for the Local Economy
Enrollment figures are institutional numbers, but they land on the surrounding city.
“Students also contribute to the local economy while enrolled, through spending on housing, food, retail, transportation, and other goods and services, as well as internships and employment with local organizations,” Mitchell wrote.
The effect is concentrated and recurring. Thousands of students arriving in August and staying through spring create demand for apartments, restaurants, grocery stores and part-time labor in a defined set of neighborhoods. For businesses near all three campuses, the academic calendar functions as a second seasonal cycle running alongside the coastal tourism one.
“We are encouraged by the momentum we’re seeing and remain focused on sustainable growth while preserving the Christ-centered education and close-knit community that define the University of Mobile,” Mitchell said.
A Statewide Pattern
Alabama colleges and universities broadly are reporting overall enrollment and freshman class increases this fall, including Samford University, the University of Alabama, the University of Alabama at Birmingham and the University of Alabama at Huntsville.
Against that backdrop, South Alabama’s 0.8% decline reads less as a local problem than as a variation within a strong statewide year — and holding above 14,000 for a third straight year, with record on-campus housing and the largest Honors College cohort in school history, is not the profile of an institution losing ground.