In this brief, the authors examine changes in enrollments at the Los Angeles Community College District between fall 2017 and summer 2023 to document the extent of pandemic-era enrollment declines overall and across student populations.

We look at the expansion of a higher education system through the lens of concentration in the distribution of enrollments among institutions. Using data from the Brazilian Higher Education Censuses from 2002 to 2016, we found that the diversification of segments that compose the system was associated with an increase in concentration and market…

The popular image of the international student in the American imagination is one of affluence, access, and privilege, but is that image accurate? In this provocative book, higher education scholar Stephanie Kim challenges this view, arguing that universities -- not the students -- create the paths that allow students their international mobility.…

Using field experiments, I investigate if provision of (social) information can increase incoming university students' attendance in a voluntary remedial math course. In Intervention 1, treated students receive an invitation letter with or without information about a past sign-up rate for the course. In Intervention 2, among those who signed up…

Globally, one in three students are now enrolled in private higher education institutions (PHEIs), with the total reaching almost 70 million enrolments. This pattern is similar across a highly diverse Asia: more than 35% of students are enrolled in the private sector, and around 60% of higher education institutions (usually much smaller than their…

This guest perspective argues that converting in-person summer pre-college program participants into matriculated, degree-seeking undergraduate students at that same institution is a multi-step process that involves: 1) strategic pre-college program recruitment, 2) a curated and well-rounded summer pre-college experience that is both academically…

After trailing the national average for five years, funding per student at public colleges and universities in Wisconsin overtook it in 2021. State and local tax and tuition funding per student dropped nationally after adjusting for inflation and rose in Wisconsin, though it remains lower for four-year campuses in Wisconsin. The state's colleges…

California is home to the fifth-largest population of Black people in the United States, approximately 2.8 million individuals. However, when Black Californians seek access to the state's colleges and universities, they face undue bureaucratic and financial barriers. This Equity Alert explores a legislative proposal to create a California…

The global increase in enrolment in higher education (HE) has increased the diversity of students who access HE, which poses a challenge because we have a limited understanding of the way students experience HE institutions. This paper investigates why students dropout of HE and propose preventive measures. Dropout has adverse effects on student…

This article looks at whether the Great Recession led to changes in two-year and four-year college enrollment patterns for students aged 18-24. In particular, I examine how the probability of enrollment changed for Black and Latinx students. It is not initially clear whether the Great Recession would increase or decrease college enrollment for…

This Data Point looks first at whether students who planned to go to college also met with a high school counselor about financial aid. The second question considers a different population of students, addressing whether students who enrolled in college also received aid. This analysis does not indicate a causal relationship between meeting with a…

Washington's high school graduation rate has increased over the past decade. In 2022, 82 percent of high school students in the state graduated in four years, a six-percentage point increase over the 2013 graduation rate. This report looks at postsecondary enrollment trends for Washington high school graduates in the classes of 2020 and 2021…

The number of colleges and universities facing financial difficulty is rising rapidly, and the pressures upon these institutions will be exacerbated by the arrival of the "demographic cliff " (18 years out from the fall in birth rates during the 2008/09 economic downturn) in 2026/27. The Forbes annual financial ranking of academic…

Recent years have seen a major decline in community college enrollments across the country. Although the market to attract secondary school students contains many pathways, the overall marketplace is very competitive as most schools are competing for the same body of students. The adult market is the largest and most neglected group of potential…

The Higher Education Emergency Relief (HEER) Fund had two main purposes: (1) to ensure that colleges could continue to provide education to students in the wake of the pandemic and (2) to provide emergency financial assistance through colleges directly to students. Four years after the onset of the pandemic, this ARCC Network brief uses college…