When Reb Finkel first came to the Mir at the age of 17 in 1960, enrollment was less than 200 students, of which 75 percent were "avreichim" (married students) and 25 percent were undergraduates. When he became rosh yeshiva in 1990, enrollment stood at approximately 1,200 students. At the time of his death, enrollment reached nearly 6,000 undergraduates and over 1,600 "avreichim". This growth is credited to Finkel's open-door policy as rosh yeshiva: whoever wished to learn at the Mir was welcome. Enrollment now includes Litvish, Hasidic, Ashkenazi, Sephardi and baalei teshuva students from Israel, the United States and Europe.