PORTLAND – School officials say applications to Maine’s universities and community colleges have increased this year due to greater marketing efforts and a flagging economy.

In the University of Maine System, spokesman John Diamond said its seven universities and 10 regional outreach centers have received 4.5 percent more applications for 2008-09 than last year.

And Maine Community College System spokeswoman Helen Pelletier said the community college system’s seven colleges and nine off-campus centers have received 8 percent more applications than last year.

The university system is promoting itself among community college students in particular, encouraging them to go for a bachelor’s degree after receiving an associate degree.

School officials won’t know exactly how the increased interest will affect enrollment until student populations stabilize in October.

“But we do expect to see some increase in enrollment as well,” Pelletier said of the community college system, which serves more than 28,000 students annually.

“We’re at the highest enrollment levels we’ve experienced in the 40-year history of the university system,” Diamond said.

Diamond attributed this year’s application increase, in part, to the university system’s television advertisements and outreach programs.

He also said that with high fuel prices and other worries about money, many students are finding it more economical to pursue a four-year degree in Maine rather than to go out of state and in a public institution rather than a private one.

Community colleges typically see an increase in applications and enrollment when job prospects grow uncertain and people seek specialized career opportunities and better-paying jobs, Pelletier said.

The university system has maintained fall enrollments of 32,000 to 33,000 students for the last several years, with a record high of 34,000 students enrolled in the fall of 2006, Diamond said. Each year, the university system serves a total of 45,000 students.

The community college system has experienced significant enrollment growth since its transition from a technical college system in 2003. The number of students enrolled in degree-granting programs has increased 55 percent since 2002, to 11,682 students in the fall of 2007, Pelletier said.