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College enrollment is falling at a 'concerning' rate, new data reveals

3 points by rntn 2y ago

alsetmusic 2y ago
> “Since the most recent high in 2007, the number of births has declined 17%, and the general fertility rate has declined 21%,” the August 2024 data shows. Last night, after a comedy show, my buddy and I observed very young kids behaving in a drunken manner outside a bar (pretty sure there were high school aged kids in the group). Our conversation turned to their lack of future and how we’re about the last generation with the possibility to have financial independence. Sorta lines up with the financial crisis 2008-era. We also discussed the effects of stress on mental health issues, which I now wonder how that affects fertility. It certainly doesn’t seem like it would help. Living precariously can’t be good for your reproductive parts.
dlcarrier 2y ago
I'm more concerned with high rates of college enrollment, especially when students are forgoing years of possible work experience for degrees that don't help them work more effectively in their field. Some organizations do require having a bachelors degree, whether or not it is in the field of work, to even apply, as a way of weeding out lower class applicants, but if everyone gets a bachelors degree that won't work anymore, and they'll have to move on to a post graduate degree or another kind of metric. On top of that, many students that attend college for years don't receive a degree, so they forgo work experience without even the benefit of joining a higher tier of applicants when applying for a new job.
gibbitz 2y ago
Well, if you make a cheeseburger $70 sales will fall too. My Alma mater charges more than 4x what I paid 20 years ago for tuition. The systematic refunding of schools has led to this rise in tuition. The rich can afford it and the poor will be forced to forego higher education, instead being trained by echo chambers on the internet. Sadly, I can't say this was engineered, but I don't see the pattern breaking any time soon. I could see tuition going into 7 digits for private schools in the next 10 years.

3 points by rntn 2y ago

> “Since the most recent high in 2007, the number of births has declined 17%, and the general fertility rate has declined 21%,” the August 2024 data shows. Last night, after a comedy show, my buddy and I observed very young kids behaving in a drunken manner outside a bar (pretty sure there were high school aged kids in the group). Our conversation turned to their lack of future and how we’re about the last generation with the possibility to have financial independence. Sorta lines up with the financial crisis 2008-era. We also discussed the effects of stress on mental health issues, which I now wonder how that affects fertility. It certainly doesn’t seem like it would help. Living precariously can’t be good for your reproductive parts.

dlcarrier 2y ago

I'm more concerned with high rates of college enrollment, especially when students are forgoing years of possible work experience for degrees that don't help them work more effectively in their field. Some organizations do require having a bachelors degree, whether or not it is in the field of work, to even apply, as a way of weeding out lower class applicants, but if everyone gets a bachelors degree that won't work anymore, and they'll have to move on to a post graduate degree or another kind of metric. On top of that, many students that attend college for years don't receive a degree, so they forgo work experience without even the benefit of joining a higher tier of applicants when applying for a new job.

gibbitz 2y ago

Well, if you make a cheeseburger $70 sales will fall too. My Alma mater charges more than 4x what I paid 20 years ago for tuition. The systematic refunding of schools has led to this rise in tuition. The rich can afford it and the poor will be forced to forego higher education, instead being trained by echo chambers on the internet. Sadly, I can't say this was engineered, but I don't see the pattern breaking any time soon. I could see tuition going into 7 digits for private schools in the next 10 years.