Colleges and Universities

Colleges and Universities

The Detroit region is home to several ranked higher education institutions that feed the growing need for high-level talent. The region is home to 34 colleges and universities, including the only national academic and innovation research cluster, The University Research Corridor (URC).

The URC is an alliance of Michigan’s three leading research institutions— University of Michigan, Michigan State University and Wayne State University.

• $19 Billion net economic impact with 141,235 enrolled students and $2.56 billion in R&D spending
• 3 million URC alumni worldwide with 690,000 graduates residing in Michigan

2-Year and 4-Year Enrollment

Enrollment increases are needed to sustain progress to reach 60% postsecondary educational attainment and cut the racial equity gap in half by 2030. In fall 2020, almost 338,000 students enrolled into a postsecondary program in the Detroit Region. For more data on college enrollment please visit, Detroit Data Center.

Public Universities

College/University	City	2020 Fall Enrollment
Central Michigan University	Mount Pleasant	17,311
Eastern Michigan University	Ypsilanti	16,294
Michigan State University	Lansing	59,695
Oakland University	Rochester	18,552
The University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	Ann Arbor	47,907
The University of Michigan-Dearborn	Dearborn	8,783
The University of Michigan-Flint	Flint	6,829
Wayne State University	Detroit	26,241
Ferris State University	Big Rapids	11,165
Grand Valley State University	Allendale	23,350
Lake Superior State University	Sault Sainte Marie	1,909
Michigan Technological University	Houghton	6,873
Northern Michigan University	Marquette	7,368
Saginaw Valley State University	University Center	8,028
Western Michigan University	Kalamazoo	19,887

Source: National Center for Education Statistics

Private Colleges and  Universities

College/University	City	2020 Fall Enrollment
Adrian College	Adrian	1,865
College for Creative Studies	Detroit	1,512
Cleary University	Howell	658
Concordia University	Ann Arbor	1,165
Davenport University	Grand Rapids	6,127
Kettering University	Flint	2,030
Lawrence Technological University	Southfield	2,812
Madonna University	Livonia	2,792
Northwood University	Midland	2,541
Olivet College	Olivet	1,023
Rochester University	Rochester Hills	1,231
Siena Heights University	Adrian	2,433
Spring Arbor University	Spring Arbor	2,036
Thomas M. Cooley Law (WSU) School	Lansing	972
University of Detroit Mercy	Detroit	4,987
Walsh College	Troy	1,744

Source: National Center for Education Statistics

Community Colleges

College/University	City	2020 Fall Enrollment
Henry Ford College	Dearborn	11,345
Macomb Community College	Warren	16,736
Monroe County Community College	Monroe	2,302
Mott Community College	Flint	5,920
Oakland Community College	Bloomfield Hills	14,511
St. Clair County Community College	Port Huron	3,315
Schoolcraft College	Livonia	8,116
Washtenaw Community College	Ann Arbor	11,140
Wayne County Community College District	Detroit	10,748

Source: National Center for Education Statistics

College Graduates 

In 2020, a total of 62,398 students graduated from a postsecondary program in the Detroit Region. Certificates accounted for (7,171), Associate’s (11,911), Bachelor’s (27,463), Master’s (11,773), and Professional or PhD (3,227) of the total.

College Graduates by Race

Since 2015, growth in college graduates has declined largely for Black and white students in the Detroit region. From 2015 to 2020, white graduates declined 14.5% and Black graduates declined 38% and the region experienced growth in Asian (+21.8%) and Hispanic (+8.3%) graduates. In 2020, the Detroit region had roughly 52,500 graduates of whom 73% were white, 13% Black, 8% Asian and 5% Hispanic

Degree Completions

Michigan ranks in the top 10 for total degree completions from public institutions for every type of degree (i.e. Bachelor’s) with more than 106,700 degrees awarded in 2020. In the Detroit region, almost 70,000 degrees were awarded from public and private institutions in 2020. The most awarded programs in the region included health profession, business, management, marketing, and engineering.

Degrees Conferred 2019-20, Detroit Region

Degree Field	Associate's	Bachelor's	Master's	Doctor's	Total
Health Professions & Related	2,050	3,835	1,349	1,357	11,843
Business, Management, Marketing & Related	1,511	4,639	2,781	22	9,543
Engineering & Engineering Technologies	565	3,115	2,236	351	7,102
Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services	416	2,075	569	42	3,530
Biological & Biomedical Sciences	98	1,609	416	158	2,267
Architecture & Related	64	159	217	5	387
Physical Sciences & Science Technologies	246	340	142	142	874
Legal Professions & Studies	65	24	46	673	863
Mathematics & Statistics	4	388	182	48	623
English & Foreign Languages, & Literature	3	420	84	25	537
Total, All Programs	5,022	16,604	8,022	2,823	37,569

Source: EMSI
Note: All Institution Sectors