By Lindsay Tice,Staff Writer

LEWISTON – More students want into Maine colleges this fall.

Experts aren’t sure what’s behind the swell of applications, which has grown as much as 13 percent. More Maine high-schoolers may be interested in college. High-schoolers could be applying to more schools. Or Maine colleges may be doing a better job at recruiting.

“I think it’s sort of all of the above,” said Scott Hood, spokesman for Bowdoin College in Brunswick.

According to national news reports, selective private colleges saw a surge in applicants this year, with some increasing more than 20 percent. Maine hasn’t seen quite that much growth, but both private and public colleges are sharing the boom here.

The University of Southern Maine, which includes Lewiston-Auburn College, saw 13 percent more applications from students who want to start their freshman year there in the fall.

The University of Maine in Orono got 11 percent more.

Central Maine Community College in Auburn and Colby College in Waterville received 9 percent more.

The University of Maine at Farmington got 8 percent more. Bowdoin College in Brunswick got 7 percent more.

At Bates College in Lewiston, applications haven’t gone up. But it nearly matches last year’s application rate, which was a record-breaker for the 150-year-old school.

Many college leaders credit their schools’ stellar reputations and recent recruitment efforts, including a focus on minority students, Mainers and out-of-staters, for their surge in prospective students.

“We wanted this to happen,” said Steve Thomas, admissions director for Colby College, which waived its application fee for Maine students this year. Colby got 400 more applications, 100 of them from Mainers.

But college leaders and experts also agree that more students seem to be considering college. And when they do, they seem to be applying to more schools.

A decade ago, faced with lengthy applications to be filled out by hand, students applied only to three or four schools. Today, many colleges use the same basic application and allow students to do all the work online, so students try for six, eight or even 10 schools at a time.

“It’s doable,” said Joan Macri, who runs a college transition program at Lewiston High School. “The application process has become much easier.”

For a state struggling to get more people into higher education, the applicant surge is positive.

“I hope what it signals, particularly in Maine, is that more kids are interested in attending college,” said Bill Geller, admissions director at UMF.

But for students who have their heart set on a particular school, it isn’t all good news. Although colleges are getting more applicants, they generally aren’t accepting more students.

Bowdoin, for example, received 356 more applications this year but added no openings to the Class of 2010. Nearly 5,400 people now vie for 480 slots.

“It’s highly competitive,” said Hood.

So far, it hasn’t been a problem for Lewiston High School students, some of whom have already been accepted at a school. Last year, 78 percent of Lewiston High students applied to college and got into at least one of their choices, according to the guidance department. Officials expect the same this year.

“Often, the very hardest part for our students is they get into multiple schools, and they have to decide where to go,” Macri said.

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