The student population at Sam Houston State University is 21,039 (17,787 undergraduate and 3,252 graduate students) . The number of students has increased by 1,008 (5.03%) over the past decade.
The average student population over the last 11 years is 21,166 where 21,039 students are attending the school for the academic year 2024-2025.
Total enrollment fluctuated between 2016 and 2025, with 5 year-over-year increases and 4 decreases. It peaked at 21,912 students in 2021 and was lowest at 20,031 in 2016. Overall, enrollment rose from 20,031 to 21,039 students, a net gain of 1,008 (5%).
The following table and chart illustrate the changes in student population by gender at Sam Houston State University since 2015.
| Year | Total | Undergraduate | Graduate | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Men | Women | Total | Men | Women | ||
| 2015-16 | 20,031 | 17,401 | 6,761 | 10,640 | 2,630 | 880 | 1,750 |
| 2016-17 | 20,477 446 | 17,902 501 | 6,855 94 | 11,047 407 | 2,575 -55 | 830 -50 | 1,745 -5 |
| 2017-18 | 20,938 461 | 18,416 514 | 7,023 168 | 11,393 346 | 2,522 -53 | 754 -76 | 1,768 23 |
| 2018-19 | 21,213 275 | 18,498 82 | 6,998 -25 | 11,500 107 | 2,715 193 | 884 130 | 1,831 63 |
| 2019-20 | 21,558 345 | 18,805 307 | 7,126 128 | 11,679 179 | 2,753 38 | 880 -4 | 1,873 42 |
| 2020-21 | 21,912 354 | 18,811 6 | 6,974 -152 | 11,837 158 | 3,101 348 | 966 86 | 2,135 262 |
| 2021-22 | 21,612 -300 | 18,288 -523 | 6,623 -351 | 11,665 -172 | 3,324 223 | 1,053 87 | 2,271 136 |
| 2022-23 | 21,480 -132 | 18,235 -53 | 6,660 37 | 11,575 -90 | 3,245 -79 | 1,004 -49 | 2,241 -30 |
| 2023-24 | 21,403 -77 | 18,179 -56 | 6,739 79 | 11,440 -135 | 3,224 -21 | 1,047 43 | 2,177 -64 |
| 2024-25 | 21,039 -364 | 17,787 -392 | 6,660 -79 | 11,127 -313 | 3,252 28 | 1,043 -4 | 2,209 32 |
| Average | 21,166 | 18,232 | 6,842 | 11,390 | 2,934 | 934 | 2,000 |
The average number of Undergraduate students over the last 11 years is 18,232 where 17,787 students are attending the Undergraduate school for the academic year 2024-2025. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in Undergraduate enrollment by attending status and gender at Sam Houston State University since 2015.
| Year | Total | Full-time | Part-time | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Men | Women | Total | Men | Women | ||
| 2015-16 | 17,401 | 14,117 | 5,482 | 8,635 | 3,284 | 1,279 | 2,005 |
| 2016-17 | 17,902 | 14,497 | 5,518 | 8,979 | 3,405 | 1,337 | 2,068 |
| 2017-18 | 18,416 | 14,808 | 5,589 | 9,219 | 3,608 | 1,434 | 2,174 |
| 2018-19 | 18,498 | 15,073 | 5,707 | 9,366 | 3,425 | 1,291 | 2,134 |
| 2019-20 | 18,805 | 15,311 | 5,798 | 9,513 | 3,494 | 1,328 | 2,166 |
| 2020-21 | 18,811 | 15,020 | 5,620 | 9,400 | 3,791 | 1,354 | 2,437 |
| 2021-22 | 18,288 | 14,352 | 5,204 | 9,148 | 3,936 | 1,419 | 2,517 |
| 2022-23 | 18,235 | 14,573 | 5,306 | 9,267 | 3,662 | 1,354 | 2,308 |
| 2023-24 | 18,179 | 14,533 | 5,373 | 9,160 | 3,646 | 1,366 | 2,280 |
| 2024-25 | 17,787 | 14,825 | 5,571 | 9,254 | 2,962 | 1,089 | 1,873 |
| Average | 18,232 | 18,232 | 5,517 | 9,194 | 18,232 | 1,325 | 2,196 |
The average number of Graduate students over the last 11 years is 2,934 where 3,252 students are attending the Graduate school for the academic year 2024-2025. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in Graduate enrollment by attending status and gender at Sam Houston State University since 2015.
| Year | Total | Full-time | Part-time | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Men | Women | Total | Men | Women | ||
| 2015-16 | 2,630 | 652 | 222 | 430 | 1,978 | 658 | 1,320 |
| 2016-17 | 2,575 | 620 | 216 | 404 | 1,955 | 614 | 1,341 |
| 2017-18 | 2,522 | 611 | 194 | 417 | 1,911 | 560 | 1,351 |
| 2018-19 | 2,715 | 672 | 212 | 460 | 2,043 | 672 | 1,371 |
| 2019-20 | 2,753 | 692 | 226 | 466 | 2,061 | 654 | 1,407 |
| 2020-21 | 3,101 | 820 | 283 | 537 | 2,281 | 683 | 1,598 |
| 2021-22 | 3,324 | 907 | 288 | 619 | 2,417 | 765 | 1,652 |
| 2022-23 | 3,245 | 955 | 320 | 635 | 2,290 | 684 | 1,606 |
| 2023-24 | 3,224 | 1,111 | 404 | 707 | 2,113 | 643 | 1,470 |
| 2024-25 | 3,252 | 1,380 | 476 | 904 | 1,872 | 567 | 1,305 |
| Average | 2,934 | 2,934 | 284 | 558 | 2,934 | 650 | 1,442 |
The percentage of white students is 44.67% and the percentage of black students is 16.95% at Sam Houston State University. 3.20% of enrolled students is Asian. Hispanic students comprise 28.45% of the student body.
Over the past 10 years, the racial composition has shifted. The percentage of white students decreased from 53.23% to 44.67%. Asian enrollment grew from 1.54% to 3.20%. Black student enrollment decreased from 17.70% to 16.95%. Hispanic student representation expanded from 20.16% to 28.45%.
The overall racial diversity, measured by the Census Bureau Diversity Index, is 0.6885 which indicates that moderately diverse. This increased from 0.6435 a decade ago, suggesting that racial diversity has improved.
The following table and chart illustrate the student population trends by race/ethnicity at Sam Houston State University over the past 11 years (2015-2025).
| Year | American Indian or Native American | Asian | Black | Hispanic | Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander | White | Two or More Races |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-16 | 102 | 308 | 3,546 | 4,039 | 28 | 10,662 | 600 |
| 2016-17 | 101 | 366 | 3,569 | 4,437 | 28 | 10,672 | 607 |
| 2017-18 | 106 | 388 | 3,647 | 4,742 | 28 | 10,751 | 607 |
| 2018-19 | 113 | 434 | 3,599 | 5,044 | 23 | 10,749 | 625 |
| 2019-20 | 130 | 449 | 3,702 | 5,223 | 24 | 10,723 | 652 |
| 2020-21 | 130 | 516 | 3,674 | 5,561 | 23 | 10,736 | 696 |
| 2021-22 | 132 | 544 | 3,493 | 5,638 | 27 | 10,425 | 711 |
| 2022-23 | 130 | 592 | 3,383 | 5,776 | 24 | 10,180 | 726 |
| 2023-24 | 146 | 626 | 3,544 | 5,946 | 21 | 9,886 | 698 |
| 2024-25 | 139 | 673 | 3,566 | 5,986 | 21 | 9,398 | 724 |
| Average | 123 | 490 | 3,572 | 5,239 | 25 | 10,418 | 665 |
4,590 students are enrolled in online degree programs exclusively for the academic year 2024-2025, which is 22% of total students. The number of online students has increased 69.31% since 2015. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in the online student population by enrolled type at Sam Houston State University from 2015 to 2025.
| Year | Total Enrollment | Online Completely | Enrolled in Some Online Courses | Not Enrolled in Online Courses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-16 | 20,031 | 2,711 | 6,567 | 10,753 |
| 2016-17 | 20,477 | 2,833 | 6,623 | 11,021 |
| 2017-18 | 20,938 | 3,062 | 7,485 | 10,391 |
| 2018-19 | 21,213 | 3,489 | 7,776 | 9,948 |
| 2019-20 | 21,558 | 3,682 | 7,793 | 10,083 |
| 2020-21 | 21,912 | 4,425 | 8,640 | 8,847 |
| 2021-22 | 21,612 | 5,252 | 8,795 | 7,565 |
| 2022-23 | 21,480 | 5,098 | 9,260 | 7,122 |
| 2023-24 | 21,403 | 4,790 | 9,385 | 7,228 |
| 2024-25 | 21,039 | 4,590 | 9,191 | 7,258 |
| Average | 21,166 | 3,993 | 8,152 | 9,022 |
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