The ongoing admission crisis at U.S. universities deepened in the spring of 2022, and there are concerns that even if the coronavirus pandemic disrupts the operation of higher education, there is a fundamental shift in attitudes towards the value of college degrees. It is increasing.
The latest college enrollment numbers released Thursday by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center show that the number of undergraduate students enrolled in undergraduate courses in the spring of 2022 was 662,000 less than the previous year, down 4.7%. Enrollment of graduate and professional students, which was a bright spot during the pandemic, also fell by 1 percent from last year.
Doug Shapiro, Managing Director of the Center, pointed out a slight increase in first-year first-year students. However, he suggested that the number and extent of declines show a fundamental change, as students question whether college is a ticket to the middle class and a high-paying job.
“It suggests that it’s more than a pandemic for me. It’s not just low-income communities that community colleges serve primarily,” Dr. Shapiro said. Said at the conference call. “It suggests that there are broader questions about the value of colleges, especially concerns about student debt and college payments and potential labor market benefits.”
He said future college students may weigh the relative value of a job that requires or expects a college degree from an equally attractive opportunity that does not.
Terry W. Hartle, Senior Vice President of the American Education Association, a major industry association, cautioned against the interpretation of the data.
“Numbers are disappointing and annoying, but I’m reluctant to read the major implications for a spring semester registration change during a pandemic,” Dr. Hartle said.
Recent issues with American university campuses
- Registration crisis: According to new data, the number of students enrolled in undergraduate courses in the spring of 2022 was 662,000 less than the previous year, a decrease of 4.7%.
- Harvard University President: Lawrence S. Bakou, who piloted the university through attacks on pandemics and admissions policies, announced that he would resign in 2023.
- Affirmative action: As the Supreme Court prepares to determine the legality of two race-aware abortion programs, lawyers who helped draft a Texas abortion ban offer critics of affirmative action a new path. Did.
- Freedom of speech: Legal scholars who wrote that President Biden would nominate a “black woman” to the Supreme Court were allowed to take on a new job in Georgetown after an investigation. He decided to resign anyway.
“One of the things we clearly see is that the major public universities, which are well-known institutions, often struggle with local state universities, while at the same time having more applicants than ever before. That’s what he said.
Overall, during the pandemic, the total enrollment of undergraduate students decreased by about 1.4 million, or 9.4 percent. When the pandemic broke out in the spring of 2020, many universities moved to online education and some students did not report to campus at all. This has significantly changed the experience of traditional universities.
However, even before the pandemic, the number of university students leveled off and there were questions about student debt, so the number of university enrollments nationwide at higher education institutions suffering from demographic changes. It was decreasing. The highly polarized immigration debate has also driven foreign students away.
While elite colleges and universities continue to attract applicant overflows, pandemics are devastating to many public universities, especially community colleges that serve many low- and middle-income students.
The decline generally occurred nationwide, but was slightly more pronounced in the Midwest and Northeast.
Tennessee officials said in a report this week that the percentage of public high school graduates who entered college shortly after high school dropped from 63.8% in 2017 to 52.8% in 2021.
Overall, enrollment in public universities fell by more than 604,000, or 5 percent, in the spring of 2022. In the public sector, community colleges were the most depressed, losing 351,000 students (7.8%).
Community colleges across the country have lost 827,000 students since the pandemic began in the spring of 2020, according to figures released by the Research Center. We collect and analyze data from over 3,600 higher education institutions for use in the industry.
In the spring of 2022, the number of enrollments in the first year increased by 13,700, or 4.2 percent, compared to last spring, as Dr. Shapiro called it a possible sign of an “early recovery.”
“We still don’t know if this will lead to a recovery for new students in the fall,” said Dr. Shapiro.
A special demographic analysis by the Clearinghouse found that black freshman enrollment decreased by 6.5%, or 2,600 students, so this increase was less than that of black students. In total, there were 8,400 new black students less than in 2020.
The Tennessee Commission on Higher Education also quoted what is known as the “significant disparity” between black and Hispanic students and white students in publishing the figures.
Overall, Dr. Shapiro said the numbers were steeper and more discouraging than those reported by the organization in the fall semester.
“I thought some of the decline would start to shrink a bit this quarter,” he said. “I’m surprised that it looks worse.”