The writing’s been on the wall for over a decade now. College enrollments, for the most part, have generally been on the decline for years. And for schools that only offer on-campus two-year, four-year and postgraduate degrees, the trend may be accelerating, and this is highly concerning.
You see, it was assumed that we’d see a big bump in traditional college enrollments post-pandemic, and the number of students earning degrees would rebound…
But that big bump in enrollments never came and, according to Inside Higher Ed, the number of students actually earning college degrees has now fallen for two consecutive years.[1]
In fact, they say that during this time period, 100,000 fewer students earned a degree. Doug Shapiro, the executive director of the National Student Clearinghouse said in the publication, it’s “the steepest that we’ve ever recorded.”
Now, even though the new data compiled within the article has revealed some scary facts, there are some bright spots.
But before we share some of the facts and bright spots, it’s important for you to know that Conversion Media Group, a national leader in higher ed enrollment initiatives, could have a solution to your enrollment concerns (and if you don’t have enrollment concerns, we have a way to help create a waiting list).
These solution we’ll explain could have an especially positive effect with enrollments for online college degree programs, trade schools, career college enrollments and for the enrollment of adult learners into certificate programs. More on this in a moment.
First, the facts.
The overall number of people earning a Bachelor’s, Associate or certificate during the 2022-2023 school year has fallen 2.8%.
The number of associate degree earners has dropped 8%, while the number of bachelor’s degree earners has dropped 3%, falling to levels not seen since 2015-2016.
Additionally, the number of students returning to college to earn additional credentials has fallen.
Simply put, fewer enrollees mean fewer degrees, fewer credentials earned… and lower revenue for schools.
But, like we said, there are some bright spots.
A closer look at the 2.8% drop in degree earners above (fact 1) reveals one of them.
See, the number of students enrolled in certificate programs (and the number of students that have earned their certificates) are now higher than they’ve been in a decade, increasing by 4%.
For trade schools and career-based colleges, this is great news as the publication notes, “certain fields, such as mechanic and repair technologies and construction trades, saw major gains among first-time certificate earners.”
And…
More good news can be found in another Inside Higer Ed article, which says the popularity of online learning is still ABOVE pre-pandemic levels.[2]
So, what does all this mean for your school?
Well, if you’re offering certificate programs, trades, career-based programs and offer online college degree programs, you could be in luck…
Because, as we mentioned earlier, Conversion Media Group may have a solution to your enrollment concerns.
The solution? Simply put, partner with us for your enrollment initiatives.
Why?
Our solution could have a positive effect on your enrollments, especially if you offer fully online college degrees, are a trade or career-based school or offer certificate programs.
See, we’re in constant (and continual) contact with perhaps thousands of prospective students every week. These prospective students are highly qualified, high intent prospects. They want to further their education.
Now, many of them are interested in online colleges, trade schools and certificate programs. And the moment they show genuine interest in your programs, we can transfer them to your enrollment reps, live while we have them on the phone.
They’re known as live transfer leads.
What’s better, with live transfer leads, we have the ability to help you boost your enrollments by perhaps hundreds of new students. Maybe more. It all depends on your enrollment goals.
So, if you’re interested in learning more about how we, CMG, can help boost your enrollments with live transfer leads…
How it all works and why it could be such a game-changer…
Simply call one of our education specialists today at: (+1) 800 419 3201.
Or you can contact us HERE, and we’ll get back with you as soon as possible.
Remember, by partnering with Conversion Media Group, you could potentially buck any downward enrollment trend!
[1] Degrees earned fall again, certificates on the rise (insidehighered.com)
[2] Online college enrollment continues post-pandemic decline (insidehighered.com)