A 2% decline in college enrollment has been found for the 2012-2013 period for the first drop since the 1990s.* It is not occurring in the colleges with the most prestigious reputations (like MIT, Harvard, etc.) but in the for-profit and second line institutions. A part of the problem is the high cost of college education these days. Even a university like Wake Forest costs $50,000 a school year, a relative's daughter found out. I believe she ended up going to the University of Georgia. For-profit colleges may also be in trouble, perhaps because of the improving economy.
Not mentioned in the article, may be the effect of political** (dumbing down of America) and news media*** (former secretary of Education William Bennett, and others) drumbeats that the cost of college may not be worth it.. I hope no student is swayed by these arguments. The life of a blue collar worker is one of insecurity and usually physical labor, even if a skilled labor job (e.g. heating and air conditioning technicians or automobile mechanic, etc.) and assembly lines are deadening to the spirit.
* http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/26/education/in-a-recovering-economy-a-decline-in-college-enrollment.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&wpisrc=nl_wonk_b
** http://stopcontinentaldrift.blogspot.com/2010/10/dumbing-down-of-america-if-you-listen.html
*** http://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2013/05/09/why-a-college-degree-no-longer-guarantees-success
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