Student Population Changes
The average student population over the last 11 years is 9,956 where 10,318 students are attending the school for the academic year 2024-2025.
Total enrollment fluctuated between 2016 and 2025, with 3 year-over-year increases and 6 decreases. It peaked at 11,364 students in 2017 and was lowest at 7,963 in 2024. Overall, enrollment dropped from 10,657 to 10,318 students, a net loss of 339 (3.2%).
The following table and chart illustrate the changes in student population by gender at Polk State College since 2015.
Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity Changes
The percentage of white students is 21.22% and the percentage of black students is 8.43% at Polk State College. 1.25% of enrolled students is Asian. Hispanic students comprise 28.44% of the student body.
Over the past 10 years, the racial composition has shifted. The percentage of white students decreased from 54.26% to 21.22%. Asian enrollment declined from 2.42% to 1.25%. Black student enrollment decreased from 16.06% to 8.43%. Hispanic student representation expanded from 19.68% to 28.44%.
The overall racial diversity, measured by the Census Bureau Diversity Index, is 0.8665 which indicates that highly diverse. This increased from 0.6399 a decade ago, suggesting that racial diversity has improved.
The following table and chart illustrate the student population trends by race/ethnicity at Polk State College over the past 11 years (2015-2025).
Distance Learning (Online Courses) Enrollment Changes
4,120 students are enrolled in online degree programs exclusively for the academic year 2024-2025, which is 40% of total students. The number of online students has increased 180.46% since 2015. The following table and chart illustrate the changes in the online student population by enrolled type at Polk State College from 2015 to 2025.