Last fall, enrollments in the Midwest slid 4.7%, almost double the drop for the entire U.S., according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.
While the pandemic was the primary reason for the 2020 declines, falling birth rates are expected to be the main culprit going forward. Births tumbled 17% nationally from 2007 through 2020, according to Nathan Grawe, an economics professor at Carleton College who studies demographic trends. Based on that and other data, he projects undergraduate enrollment declines will accelerate around the middle of this decade, especially in the Midwest and Northeast.
The shrinking number of students is on “everybody’s mind,” said Sara Appel, associate director of policy initiatives at Midwestern Higher Education Compact, a Minneapolis-based nonprofit that seeks to attract students to colleges in the region.
Some private schools are weathering the crisis, and financial incentives appear to be helping.
Ohio’s Denison University, a private school near Columbus, saw enrollment rise 3%, or 63 students, for the current semester. The school offered state residents scholarships worth $100,000 over four years.
“Last year was the best admissions year in the college’s history,” said Denison President Adam Weinberg.
At the College of Wooster, about 35 miles southwest of Akron, the total number of students rose by 36, or 2%, after the school offered a minimum scholarship of $27,500 a year for Ohio residents, said Jenn Winge, vice president for enrollment. The school draws about one-third of its students from the Buckeye State.
Even small swings in enrollment can have a big impact on a college’s finances.
“For schools of our size and scope, a difference of 10 can make a difference in how you build your budget and how things look and balance at the end,” Winge said.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.