ASU announces record enrollment for 2025-26 school year

Arizona State University has long been known as one of the largest public universities in the country, and now has a 5% enrollment increase for the 2025-26 academic year.

More than 42,000 first-year students will begin classes at one of the four ASU campuses in August and more than 18,000 students will begin classes online, totaling more than 79,000 students and an 8% increase in enrollment from 2024.

Although the university as a whole saw record enrollment, international student enrollment saw a decrease of more than 3,000 student decrease from last academic year. The 2025 school year has an estimated 14,000 international students from both new and returning students. Many international students come from China, India and Saudi Arabia.

“International students are economic contributors, scientific collaborators and cultural ambassadors,” said ASU President Michael Crow in a statement. “They are essential to the very goals the nation is trying to achieve — a growing economy, technological leadership and strengthened democratic alliances around the world.” 

Foreign student enrollment has been falling at university’s across the U.S. in large part as the U.S. government this year has been increasingly active in policing student visas. In June, the U.S. Department of State announced a ban of visas from 12 countries.

ASU has campus programs in Hawaii, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., where students can immerse themselves with experiences in Congress, LA Fashion week and Polynesian customs and sciences. ASU also has a large internation student population that contributes heavily to the Arizona economy and promotes growth.

The university reported a total of more than 194,000 students for the academic year from all campuses and online.