SAN ANTONIO — The University of Texas at San Antonio’s reach is expanding. The Tier 1 research institution is growing in size and enrollment.

Manquel Bocanegra is a resident assistant entering his senior year. He’s excited for moving day at the dorms at the University of Texas at San Antonio.

“I have 46 residents,” Bocanegra said.

He gets to help freshman like Chanel Williams get acquainted with campus.

“Just seeing the parking lot, I was like ‘Woah,’” said Williams. “You have lines and lines of students. UTSA has defiantly expanded.”

Lynn Barnes is the senior vice provost of strategic enrollment at UTSA.

“It has become a destination school,” Barnes said about growing enrollment.

He says nearly 35,000 students are enrolled this school year. More than a 5% jump from pre-pandemic numbers.

“A lot of success in many areas,” Barnes said. “Academics, of course, our athletics. I just think the success of our students has propelled growth.”

But for some students, San Antonio is just a pit stop. Every year there are thousands of applicants who qualify for UT-Austin admission. But there just isn’t enough space.

“Over the past few years we’ve enrolled close to 600 students in the fall semester,” Barnes said. “These are students in the CAP program.”

Williams is enrolled in the coordinated admissions program (CAP). CAP students have to spend their first year at other schools in UT’s system, hoping to transfer into UT-Austin. A move Williams is now reconsidering.

“I’m starting to feel like really at home here,” Williams said. “The campus isn’t too big, but it’s not too small. And there’s so many great resources and opportunities here. So definitely starting to lean a little bit, but we’ll see.”

Ultimately, Barnes attributes UTSA’s growth to the culture, multiple campuses and valuable career exploration opportunities in the seventh largest city in the country.

“We’re trying to continue to grow and serve the needs of our community and state,” Barnes said.

Whether she stays home in SA — that just isn’t Williams’s focus right now.

“My dream is to help someone, get my schoolwork done and then maybe do Miss USA one day and become an attorney,” Chanel said.