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thank you for linking stats. going back to 1998 there is clearly huge growth. total enrollment might already be taking a hit but i am referring more to the expe
by baby-yoda 5y ago
thank you for linking stats. going back to 1998 there is clearly huge growth. total enrollment might already be taking a hit but i am referring more to the expenditure side of things - dorm buildings, campus luxuries, etc. the figures from your link display this, IMO. especially the expenditures.
https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d19/figures/fig_12.asp https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d19/figures/fig_12.asp
but to be fair, yes the stats do indicate a decrease in enrollment. however degrees conferred has increased despite a decline in enrollment, any guesses as to that?
- syki 5y agoThere was growth in enrollment up until 2010. Colleges have been struggling since then. They need bodies and need to attract students. Standards for acceptance have gone down and grade inflation has gone up. Though grade inflation has been a thing for many decades now. As to your question. It’s easier to get a degree now since standards have been lowered since we need to retain students. The cost of acquiring a student is much higher than retaining a student so a lot of effort has gone into retention. What this boils down to in my opinion is the need to pass students. Not failing students is the easiest way to retain them.
- baby-yoda 5y agomakes sense, i hadn't thought about the grade inflation aspect. somewhat akin to the prevalence of fraud in asset bubbles. i also wonder if something like the power law is in play - larger schools fairing better with a larger student base to allocate acquisition costs over, vs smaller specialty schools. anecdotally i have seen one or two small schools close to me close/merge with other schools.
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]