The University of Wyoming's School of Energy Resources has seen a slow decline in enrollment in recent years. This has prompted the school to make changes to their marketing and recruitment strategies to try to interest new students.
Mark Northam, Executive Director of the school, is concerned that the drop in enrollment could affect students who are already a part of the single degree program. All 12 of last year's graduating class had confirmed job offers by graduation.
"When enrollment drops off, the people who come to campus to offer internships and the people who come here looking for employees drops off as well," he said. "So we're more concerned about outplacement impacts, than we are about viability of the degree program."
The degree program has two concentration options: Professional Land Management, and Energy, Land and Water Management. The school is starting to emphasize the renewable energy courses in each concentration more in their marketing materials.
"I think it has to do with all of the rhetoric on social media, deals with climate change, the future of coal, the pros and cons of continuing to use fossil energy, etcetera. I think kids are just losing sort of their interest in being part of the fossil energy sector," said Northam.
The school recently hired its first recruitment manager to help bolster enrollment.
Have a question about this story? Contact the reporter, Ivy Engel, at iengel@uwyo.edu.
