The student population at Northern Kentucky University is 15,347 (10,163 undergraduate and 5,184 graduate students) . The number of students has increased by 648 (4.41%) over the past decade.
- Class Level: The percentage of undergraduate students at NKU is 66.22% which is decreased by 2,368 over last 10 years. The graduate student population increased by 3,016 and it has been increasing.
- Gender Breakdown: In 2025, there were 59 male students for every 100 female students, down from 76 in 2015.
- 6,624 students enrolled in online degree program exclusively and the number of online students has increased by 320.57% since 2015.
Student Population Changes
The average student population over the last 11 years is 15,242 where 15,347 students are attending the school for the academic year 2024-2025.
Total enrollment fluctuated between 2016 and 2025, with 4 year-over-year increases and 5 decreases. It peaked at 16,211 students in 2021 and was lowest at 14,456 in 2018. Overall, enrollment rose from 14,699 to 15,347 students, a net gain of 648 (4.4%).
The following table and chart illustrate the changes in student population by gender at Northern Kentucky University since 2015.
Undergraduate Enrollment Changes
The average number of Undergraduate students over the last 11 years is 11,421 where 10,163 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 Northern Kentucky University since 2015.
Graduate Enrollment Changes
The average number of Graduate students over the last 11 years is 3,822 where 5,184 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 Northern Kentucky University since 2015.
Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity Changes
The percentage of white students is 74.46%. The percentage was 83.20% 10 years ago and NKU still has a high percentage of white students. 2.30% of enrolled students is Asian and 9.80% is black students. Hispanic students comprise 4.37% of the student body.
Over the past 10 years, the racial composition has shifted. The percentage of white students decreased from 83.20% to 74.46%. Asian enrollment grew from 1.14% to 2.30%. Black student enrollment increased from 6.63% to 9.80%. Hispanic student representation expanded from 2.83% to 4.37%.
The overall racial diversity, measured by the Census Bureau Diversity Index, is 0.4323 which indicates that somewhat diverse. This increased from 0.3020 a decade ago, suggesting that racial diversity has improved.
The following table and chart illustrate the student population trends by race/ethnicity at Northern Kentucky University over the past 11 years (2015-2025).
Distance Learning (Online Courses) Enrollment Changes
6,624 students are enrolled in online degree programs exclusively for the academic year 2024-2025, which is 43% of total students. The number of online students has increased 320.57% since 2015. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in the online student population by enrolled type at Northern Kentucky University from 2015 to 2025.