College enrollment is falling at a ‘concerning’ rate, new data reveals - eviltoast
Fewer 18-year-olds are enrolling, especially at four-year schools. But the number of applications continues to grow

Summary

College enrollment among 18-year-old freshmen fell 5% this fall, with declines most severe at public and private non-profit four-year colleges.

Experts attribute the drop to factors including declining birth rates, high tuition costs, FAFSA delays, and uncertainty over student loan relief after Supreme Court rulings against forgiveness plans.

Economic pressures, such as the need to work, also deter students.

Despite declining enrollment, applications have risen, particularly among low- and middle-income students, underscoring interest in higher education. Experts urge addressing affordability and accessibility to reverse this trend.

  • meyotch@slrpnk.net
    223·
    3 days ago

    The purpose of a system is what it does.

    Higher ed as currently constituted keeps young troublemakers distracted during their wild years and then burdens them with long term debt obligations.

    Before we began recognizing the humanity of women (and their usefulness in the labor force), the preferred method of social enslavement was early child birth. Student debt seems to be a good replacement as a social control mechanism.

      • meyotch@slrpnk.net
        8·
        3 days ago

        That’s the point if the saying I started my comment with.

        There is no written policy stating that student debt will be used as a tool of social control. That’s the ‘quiet part’.

        However there are numerous data sources showing the impact of student debt on people’s choices. Such as https://clp.law.harvard.edu/knowledge-hub/magazine/issues/student-debt/debt-takes-a-toll/

        The meaning of the saying is that it doesn’t matter one bit what you SAY the system is for, stop instead and look at what outcomes are actually produced.

        A common example is when the drumbeat starts for a new war, we hear through media that the purpose is to bring freedom or somesuch. It only takes a little scrutiny to discover that a small number of people stand to make a lot of money off the war.