Some colleges are so desperate for new students that they're offering slots to high schoolers who may not have even considered applying
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- Colleges nationwide are struggling to meet enrollment goals as more young people forgo a degree
- Some have responded by making admissions offers to students who never officially applied.
- The cost of a college education has led many young Americans to explore other options.
Just like raising wages to attract employees, universities are getting creative as they face shortages of their own.
It could be good news for tens of thousands of prospective students who could be admitted to the 162 colleges using a process that allows them to make 0ffers without a special application.
These colleges work with third-parties to launch or expand "direct admission" programs, which allow schools to send admission offers to students who haven't undergone the traditional application process. The third-parties include the Common Application, Concourse, Niche.com, Sage Scholars, and the state of Minnesota.
While the process can vary depending on the program, it often involves a student registering on a website, providing some biographical information, and inputting one's GPA and academic interests, a process that can take as little as half an hour. Then, they wait, and if a school is interested, the student might be accepted without completing any additional application materials at all.
Concourse, an online platform recently purchased by the education consulting firm EAB, has partnered with at least 125 schools. Sage Scholars and Minnesota are working with 26 and 50 respectively, while the Common Application and Niche.com are each connected with at least 14 colleges.
George Mason, Loyola University New Orleans, Iona, and St. Thomas are among the schools already using direct admission to recruit some students.
While ultra-selective universities may be less likely to embrace direct admission programs, some institutions see clearing the path for prospective students as a potential solution to their declining enrollment numbers.
"There has to be a bit of a redistribution of the power dynamic from the college to the families right now," Luke Skurman, CEO of Niche.com Inc, told The Wall Street Journal.
College enrollment has fallen over 1% since last fall, according to a report from the National Student Clearinghouse. Since the pandemic began, enrollment is down 6.5%. That's roughly 1.5 million fewer students pursuing degrees. The decline isn't a new trend, either — or one driven solely by the pandemic. Roughly 3 million fewer Americans are enrolled in college compared with a decade ago
While the enrollment decline over the past decade can be attributed to a drop in the college-age population — due to lower birth rates — there's also been scrutiny over whether a college education is worth the cost. Adjusted for inflation to 2020 dollars, the price to attend a four-year college was roughly $10,000 in 1980 — by 2020, it was nearly $30,000. This rise has contributed to the significant student debt burdens many graduates continue to carry with them.
While President's Biden proposed student debt reforms could make the repayment process more manageable for some borrowers, sky-high tuition costs may prove too large of a hurdle for many prospective students.
And the tuition bill will look even less attractive if young people continue to find success through alternative paths.
Over the past few years, there have been near record-high job openings, many of which for jobs that don't require degrees. And some employers eager to attract workers have eased their requirements, making even more careers accessible for those without a diploma. Others have explored alternative forms of education like trade schools, certifications, and apprenticeships.
As well as helping to boost enrollment numbers, direct admission advocates argue the process can expose young people to colleges — and lower tuition prices — they may never have known existed. Many may still ultimately decide college isn't the path for them, but at least they'll have more insight, these advocates argue, into what their higher-ed options are.
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