Some recent survey data shows the number of Catholics at Marquette may be dropping, but school officials say the numbers are inconclusive and are working to develop the best method for gathering religious affiliation statistics.

The Office of Institutional Research and Assessment’s Freshmen Profile Survey showed a dramatic decrease in the number of Catholics attending Marquette, largely due to students using the Common Application, which provides an optional place to indicate religion.

The 2010 survey found just 44 percent of students identified as Catholics, compared to 62 percent in 2006.

Alexandra Riley, associate director of OIRA, said it is not a safe conclusion that the number of Catholics is dropping.

She said the “unknown” group is dramatically increasing, which is something that needs to be examined. According to the 2006 survey, five percent of incoming freshmen identified themselves as unknown on their applications, while in 2010, 25 percent identified with that category.

But another survey conducted by Marquette found a higher percentage of Catholics at the university.

OIRA offered the option to provide religious affiliation on the annual 2010 Survey of First Time Freshmen. The survey showed 64 percent of freshmen identified themselves as Catholic, while the Senior Survey said 62 percent of graduating seniors identified themselves as Catholic.

Riley said this is probably a good indicator, but they aren’t completely sure, since they have only collected it once.

Steve Blaha, assistant director of Campus Ministry, said “unknown” does not necessarily mean students do not know their religious affiliation, it is just that the common application did not provide an easy way for the students to provide that information.

University officials believe the increase of students marking “unknown” is caused by the increased use of the common application, Blaha said.

The application provides an optional spot where students can write in their religious affiliation, he said.

“We have just not been able to draw information from those applications,” Blaha said. “It is not that we are seeing a decrease, but really an information question. How can we get that data and report that information?”

William Kurz, a professor of theology, said it could be possible students are just not marking their religious affiliation on applications, but also thinks it could be the way the university is reaching out and accepting students.

He said with the increase of students applying to Marquette, the university has been able to become very picky in their selection of students.

“The student body is so much more select, and a lot of the selected people are not Catholic,” he said.

Kurz also believes the data could reflect the university’s efforts to become more diverse.

“The intensity with which we are trying to get diversity can really backfire when talking about a Catholic school,” he said. “If you are bringing in groups that aren’t Catholic, the end result is fewer Catholics.”

Kurz does believe it would help for Marquette to focus on the Hispanic population, which identifies strongly with Catholicism, because “they are not only a minority, but they are Catholic.”

Campus Ministry, the Office of Admissions, OIRA, and the Office of Student Development are working together to understand why there is such a gap in the numbers and to find a better way to receive the information, Blaha said.

“This is a new trend, and we mostly need to adjust how we are doing our collection, so that our data reflects that,” he said.