Student interest growing in Kansas trade schools

TOPEKA (KSNT) – Recently released enrollment figures in Kansas show that trade schools are seeing increasing interest among students when compared to traditional higher education options.

The Kansas Board of Regents published its fall 2025 enrollment statistics on Oct. 1, revealing the latest enrollment trends across the Sunflower State. Community colleges, technical colleges and state universities all reported increases in student headcounts over the course of the last three years and a 2.2% increase in overall headcount from fall 2024 to fall 2025.

We looked at the 10-year change statistics reported by the KBOR for all higher education institutions in Kansas. The general trend from fall 2015 to fall 2025 shows that technical colleges are experiencing increased enrollment numbers while other schools are seeing decreases in headcounts.

KBOR reports that state universities have experienced little change in enrollment numbers when looking at headcounts in fall 2015 and fall 2025. Community colleges are down almost 11% for the same time frame, while technical colleges are, on average, seeing a large rise in enrollment numbers. The nearly 70% increase in enrollment for technical colleges is being primarily driven by increased headcounts at Wichita State University Campus of Applied Sciences and Technology, Salina Area Technical College and Flint Hills Technical College

Far more students are still attending state universities and community colleges when compared to the technical colleges in 2025: while state universities and community colleges account for tens of thousands of students, technical colleges only have a few thousand overall. You can look through enrollment statistics as reported by the KBOR for the fall semesters in 2015 and 2025 by checking out the list below:

• State universities.
  • Emporia State University: -20.9%.
    • 2015 – 6,094.
    • 2025 – 4,820.
  • Fort Hays State University: -9.6%.
    • 2015 – 14,210.
    • 2025 – 12,849.
  • Kansas State University: -12.5%.
    • 2015 – 23,678.
    • 2025 – 20,719.
  • Kansas State University-Veterinary Medicine: +5.6%.
    • 2015 – 468.
    • 2025 – 494.
  • Pittsburg State University: -19.9%.
    • 2015 – 7,244.
    • 2025 – 5,803.
  • University of Kansas: +10.1%.
    • 2015 – 24,708.
    • 2025 – 27,212.
  • University of Kansas Medical Center: +17%.
    • 2015 – 3,383.
    • 2025 – 3,957.
  • Wichita State University: +27.3%.
    • 2015 – 14,495.
    • 2025 – 18,458.
  • Total change: 0%.
    • 2015 – 94,280.
    • 2025 – 94,312.
• Municipal universities.
  • Washburn University: -6.7%.
    • 2015 – 6,615.
    • 2025 – 6,170.
  • Washburn Institute of Technology: +16.7%.
    • 2015 – 1,330.
    • 2025 – 1,552.
  • Total change: -2.8%.
    • 2015 – 7,945.
    • 2025 – 7,722.
• Community colleges.
  • Allen Community College: -23.8%.
    • 2015 – 2,385.
    • 2025 – 1,818.
  • Barton Community College: -14.9%.
    • 2015 – 6,281.
    • 2025 – 5,348.
  • Butler Community College: -24.3%.
    • 2015 – 9,150.
    • 2025 – 6,928.
  • Cloud County Community College: -15.2%.
    • 2015 – 2,063.
    • 2025 – 1,749.
  • Coffeyville Community College: -6.2%.
    • 2015 – 1,741.
    • 2025 – 1,633.
  • Colby Community College: +14.2%.
    • 2015 – 1,258.
    • 2025 – 1,437.
  • Cowley Community College: -25.3%.
    • 2015 – 3,083.
    • 2025 – 2,304.
  • Dodge City Community College: -2.9%.
    • 2015 – 1,779.
    • 2025 – 1,727.
  • Fort Scott Community College: -38.4%.
    • 2015 – 1,852.
    • 2025 – 1,140.
  • Garden City Community College: +4%.
    • 2015 – 2,091.
    • 2025 – 2,175.
  • Highland Community College: -20.9%
    • 2015 – 2,903.
    • 2025 – 2,297.
  • Hutchinson Community College: -6.5%.
    • 2015 – 5,546.
    • 2025 – 5,186.
  • Independence Community College: -25.3%.
    • 2015 – 978.
    • 2025 – 731.
  • Johnson County Community College: -2.4%.
    • 2015 – 19,113.
    • 2025 – 18,658.
  • Kansas City Kansas Community College: -6.1%.
    • 2015 – 5,631.
    • 2025 – 5,286.
  • Labette Community College: -4.9%.
    • 2015 – 1,516.
    • 2025 – 1,442.
  • Neosho County Community College: -17.1%.
    • 2015 – 2,069.
    • 2025 – 1,715.
  • Pratt Community College: +12.3%.
    • 2015 – 1,189.
    • 2025 – 1,335.
  • Seward County Community College: -1.5%.
    • 2015 – 1,971.
    • 2025 – 1,942.
  • Total change: -10.7%.
    • 2015 – 72,599.
    • 2025 – 64,352.
• Technical colleges.
  • Flint Hills Technical College: +95%.
    • 2015 – 941.
    • 2025 – 1,835.
  • Fort Hays Tech | North Central: +24.7%.
    • 2015 – 846.
    • 2025 – 1,055.
  • Fort Hays Tech | Northwest: -0.1%.
    • 2015 – 779.
    • 2025 – 778.
  • Manhattan Area Technical College: -0.6%.
    • 2015 – 870.
    • 2025 – 865.
  • Salina Area Technical College: +94.8%.
    • 2015 – 522.
    • 2025 – 1,017.
  • Wichita State University Campus of Applied Sciences and Technology: +101.5%.
    • 2015 – 3,319.
    • 2025 – 6,689.
  • Total change: +68.2%.
    • 2015 – 7,277.
    • 2025 – 12,239.

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