There’s good news in US higher education if you look for it

Times Higher Education

Eileen Strempel Stephen J. Handel

February 12, 2025

Anxiety and uncertainty are high within US higher education right now. Anyone attending or working at an American university is struggling to understand what 2025 and beyond will bring. And, of course, the whirlwind of challenges did not start this year. Throughout 2024 there was no shortage of surveys revealing that an increasing percentage of Americans are disappointed with traditional colleges and universities.

Given this turbulence and uncertainty, it would seem almost perverse to talk about good news in higher education. Still, it exists and needs to be highlighted, if only to remind ourselves of our collective mission to educate students and advance their social and economic mobility.

First, college applications are up. This is especially notable as the largest increases (a substantial 11 per cent) are from historically under-represented groups. Re-enrolment of Americans with some college but no degree is also up by 9 per cent to nearly 1 million students. That is still little more than 2 per cent of the almost 42 million people in that category, but that proportion should be pushed higher by the emergence of coaching programmes for adults seeking to return to college, new federal rules that make it harder for colleges to hold students’ transcripts, and the decrease in college dropouts, with six-year completion rates for the fall 2018 cohort reaching 61.1 per cent.

The rise in college applications is reflected in an overall rise in enrolments of 2.9 per cent last year. Every type of post-secondary institution saw increases, especially community colleges – whose 4.7 per cent growth saw their enrolment rebound to pre-pandemic levels. Increases were reported in a majority of states, especially in the South, the Midwest and rural states such as Maine.

College students’ mental health is also improving, with lower levels of depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation and increases in mental health care and support. This second consecutive year of improved outcomes perhaps indicates that the mental health challenges of the pandemic are receding.

On employability, student demand for apprenticeships currently outstrips supply. And three-year degrees are gaining momentum: good news for working adults and those seeking to accelerate their pathway to a degree. This is evidence of innovative thinking within higher education and a deep commitment to college completion for more Americans.

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