Brigham Young University-Idaho says a change in church policy has led to a decrease in fall enrollment.
The Rexburg-based university — owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — reported an on-campus enrollment of 24,111. That’s a 1.4% decrease from a year ago, and a record fall enrollment of 24,450.
BYU-Idaho says an additional 1,000 students deferred their enrollment this year, compared to fall 2025. Last November, the church changed its policy to allow women to serve missions at age 18; previously, women could not serve a mission until they turned 19.
“Considering this significant increase in deferments, campus enrollment remained relatively stable,” BYU-Idaho said in a news release Monday.
In other thumbnails:
- Fall enrollment includes 20,868 students taking face-to-face classes and 3,243 students who are taking online classes or working on internships.
- A slight majority of students are male, 12,526, compared to 11,585 female students.
- About 18% of students are married.
- About 22,000 students are living in Rexburg this fall.
More reading: Fall enrollment dropped at Idaho’s public colleges and universities for the first time since the pandemic. Here’s a deeper look at those numbers.
