Buena Vista University is continuing a recent enrollment upswing — with one of its biggest freshman classes in more than a decade.
BVU says it welcomed its second-largest freshman class in recent history to its Storm Lake campus this fall.
The university has not released the exact number of students in this year’s freshman class, but the announcement follows a major enrollment milestone last year.
In 2025, BVU reported its largest incoming class since 2013 and its largest Storm Lake student body since 2015, continuing a trend of five consecutive years of enrollment growth on the Storm Lake campus.
This fall, Buena Vista says it is serving 1,798 students across its Storm Lake campus, online undergraduate programs and graduate programs.
BVU is also entering the new academic year with recognition from two national publications.
As previously reported on Storm Lake Radio, Money magazine included BVU in its Best Colleges 2026 list, which evaluates more than 700 four-year colleges based on educational quality, affordability and student outcomes.
U.S. News & World Report has also again recognized BVU among the Best Regional Universities in the Midwest and Best Value Schools in the Midwest, while naming the university a Top Performer on Social Mobility.
BVU says that social mobility recognition places it above other private universities in Iowa in that category. U.S. News’ social mobility measure considers how well colleges enroll and graduate students who receive federal Pell Grants.
BVU President Brian Lenzmeier says the recognition reflects the value the university works to provide students through personal support, connections and experiences designed to prepare them for life after college.
And BVU says its graduates are continuing to stay and work in Iowa, with 76% of Storm Lake graduates remaining in the state, along with 82% of graduates from its online and graduate programs.
The university says enrollment growth and those student outcomes are part of its 10-year strategic vision, Building Beyond Expectations, which focuses on investing in academic programs, hands-on learning, student support and flexible educational pathways.
