A drop in enrollment at the University of Idaho is hurting the area's economy, which in turn is making the school less attractive for students, said Henry Robison, spokesman for Economic Modeling Specialists in Moscow. He made the report last month at an event sponsored by the Greater Moscow Alliance.
“If we lose 1,000 students, in the long run we can expect to lose about 800 jobs,” Robison said.
The university has lost about 400 students since this time last year, with enrollment reported at 10,184.
Robison said that about 55 percent of jobs in Moscow are linked to the university, which combines a combination of jobs on the campus and other jobs created as a result of student spending.
He said the university town cannot afford to end up labeled as “a great place to live and learn, but you can't find a job.” However, avoiding that label will require bringing in both employers that require advanced education and employers that hire less skilled workers, such as college students.
“It's a way to partially fund education,” said UI President Tim White, who also said part-time work can give students a feeling of belonging to a community. White said the business community, city and county government, and the university need to build partnerships to deal with the problem.
“I think one of our needs is to find a way to do this together,” said White. “Not compete amongst ourselves.”
The university's director of new student services, Lloyd Scott, said enrollment is down at most colleges and universities in the Northwest, which he said was due to a strong economy enticing students to work rather than choose to go to school.
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