The numbers keep rising: Some 90 new students will enter the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism at the end of August, as the Class of 2011 joins the 76 J-Schoolers returning from internships to begin their third and final semester. That’s about a 10% opening-day jump over last year and 30% more than 2008.

The ever-larger classes underscore the growing reputation of the CUNY J-School, now starting its fifth year, said Stephen Dougherty, director of admissions & student affairs. “It’s electric how quickly the School has risen in terms of people’s awareness.”

Overall, the applicant pool grew 25% over 2009, Dougherty said. “And the quality was there.” Keeping the class down to (a record-setting) 90, he explained, is part of a “carefully managed growth plan aimed at preserving the qualities of the program.” As with last year’s enrollees, many in this incoming class chose CUNY above other U.S. graduate journalism programs.

About 21% of the newcomers are graduates of City and State University of New York (CUNY and SUNY) colleges. Other undergraduate alma maters for the Class of ‘11 include Britain’s Oxford University, Howard University, Morehouse College, Mount Holyoke, New York University, Pomona College, Princeton, Tufts, Yale, UCLA, the University of Texas (Austin), the University of Melbourne, and Wesleyan. Roughly 35% of the incoming class is from outside New York, up from 31% for the Class of ‘10.

Some stats are holding steady. Among them: the gender makeup of the incoming class (61% vs. 39%, female to male), the average student age (26), and the percentage of underrepresented minorities (42%). Hispanic students make up the largest underrepresented minority group, followed by Asians and African Americans. The class also includes one Native American.

Among the international students are natives of Great Britain, Indonesia, Poland, Spain, and Vietnam—with the newcomers from Poland and Vietnam enrolled as Fulbright Scholars.

Dougherty said the J-School’s creative recruitment is another reason for the program’s growth spurt. “We love to have prospective students spend time here, see the facilities, and take part in the January and August Academies,” he said. “The effort to bring the best and brightest is shared across the entire J-School community. The alumni help, the students help, the faculty helps. Everyone here is actively involved. It’s not a conventional admissions process.”