Undergrad numbers continue to drop as doubts about degrees increase.
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For prospective college students, the cons of signing up for a degree (ballooning tuition costs, heaps of debt, declining value of degrees) continue to outweigh the pros (maybe you’ll like your roommate). US colleges and universities saw a 1.1% drop of undergrad students from fall 2021 to fall 2022, according to preliminary data from the National Student Clearinghouse.
Although less substantial, that decline is an extension of the pandemic trend of emptier dorms: Over two years beginning in 2020, more than 1 million fewer students chose to enroll in college—a 6.5% plunge.
Enrollment has been decreasing by at least 1% per year since 2012, but the pandemic supercharged disillusionment with higher ed. Colleges expected to see some of those students return with the loosening of restrictions, but it didn’t happen.
Bottom line: When it comes to going to college, a significant number of Americans just don’t feel the juice is worth the squeeze. 46% of parents hope their child pursues something other than a four-year degree after high school, according to a Gallup poll. Only 56% of adults under 30 who attended college believe the benefits outweighed the costs. Meanwhile, 80% of adults over 60 who attended college feel that way.—MK
