Why Are Colleges Losing Applicants?
There are so many schools of thought about what the collegiate marketplace should look like, there’s really no way to pick a side without picking a fight. Some believe college should be transformative. Some think it ought to prepare students for a vocation, others that any education is best if “well rounded.” The prevailing wisdom holds that highly competitive schools produce the best prospects for students after graduation. So, traditionally, the list of applications to get into these institutions has been much more than actual capacity. Thousands – tens of thousands – get turned away every year.
But, after decades of media coverage of this phenomenon coupled with rising tuition prices, “branded” colleges are reaping huge benefits while some traditionally exceptional colleges are seeing applications decline at a rapid rate. The numbers and names are equally stunning.
More than 20 million high school graduates are expected to walk the halls of colleges this year, up nearly 25 percent over 2000 numbers. Almost entirely, this increase has been absorbed by so-called “popular” colleges, both Ivy League and state schools. However, some schools renowned for top academic rigors are suffering huge declines in applications.