Summary

College enrollment among 18-year-old freshmen fell 5% this fall, with declines most severe at public and private non-profit four-year colleges.

Experts attribute the drop to factors including declining birth rates, high tuition costs, FAFSA delays, and uncertainty over student loan relief after Supreme Court rulings against forgiveness plans.

Economic pressures, such as the need to work, also deter students.

Despite declining enrollment, applications have risen, particularly among low- and middle-income students, underscoring interest in higher education. Experts urge addressing affordability and accessibility to reverse this trend.

  • _haha_oh_wow_
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    3 days ago

    Electives are pretty commonplace and definitely not restricted to liberal arts, even for STEM undergrads.

    • Spacehooks@reddthat.com
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      3 days ago

      My buddy with a computer science took water color and film classes. Issue is more bring forced to do it rather then take more relevant classes.

      • _haha_oh_wow_
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        3 days ago

        That’s just how undergrad goes usually. One of my undergrad degrees was science but I still had to take english, history, art, etc. Once you get to grad school it becomes more focused, but part of the point of going to college is to get a well rounded education. Otherwise, you could just pursue certifications.

        • Spacehooks@reddthat.com
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          3 days ago

          I thought the point of college was to get a paper so I can a job that tells me to forget everything I learned. Plus ppl only cared about GPA. No one askes about electives.