Graphic by Katy Mueller
It is no surprise that Mississippi natives make up more than half of The University of Mississippi’s full time, undergraduate student body. However, “Bigger in Texas, Better in the Grove” has a whole new meaning when it comes to Ole Miss enrollment.
“I wanted to go to a school that promised the full college experience. While touring Ole Miss, I knew I wouldn’t be able to find a better place. There isn’t another college that offers something quite like the Grove,” said Isabel Finch, a student from Austin, Texas.
It appears students from Texas can’t get enough of the Southern charm Ole Miss has to offer because they make up 6.4 percent of undergraduates, more than any other state.
“Coming from Austin, I love the quaint feel of Oxford. I couldn’t ask for a better college town. Oxford is home away from home,” said Michele Spinn, another Ole Miss student and Austin native.
Danny Blanton, director of public relations at the university, credits the strong alumni base in cities such as Dallas and Houston for helping the influx of Texas students. Students like Mckenzie Cook agree.
“I definitely think Texans will continue to make up a big percent of Ole Miss’s student body,” said Cook, a native of San Antonio. “I know a lot of alumni from Texas who represent Ole Miss back home and that makes kids looking at colleges more excited about applying here.”
For the past three years, Texas has been in the top spot when it comes to out-of-state students who enroll at the university. Georgia and Tennessee are currently tied for third – each make up 6 percent of the full-time undergraduate population.
“Students are going to look to go to the flagship university of the state … so, for whatever reason they don’t choose to go to The University of Texas, they’re going to look for the flagship university of the state they want to attend, and we’re an attractive option to them for a number of reasons,” Blanton said.
The increase of students from the Lone Star State has been steady. In the past three years, the percentage of Texas undergrads enrolling in Ole Miss has jumped up 21.3 percent.
“I think one of the reasons so many students come from Texas is because the schools in Texas are so hard to get in to,” Cook said.
Blanton likes to think it’s more than that.
“For a lot of students, the thing that got them to commit was the beauty of the campus and the congenial atmosphere here, the collegiate experience or what I like to call the ‘it’ factor. Ole Miss has something that other schools just don’t have, and you can feel it when you come here. Students feel at home when they come here,” Blanton said.
Whatever the reason, there are plenty of Texans happy to cheer their Lone Star beers with a Hotty Toddy.
