<p>My oldest son goes to UMass. He went there for the program and the campus. I scanned that article and think it is from a limited viewpoint. </p>
<p>You can take data and show the results that you want. The graphics stated that the enrolment at other schools had gone up over the past 10 years. True, there is a larger population bubble of students going through the system than at that time.</p>
<p>The acceptance standards at UMass have been getting harder. This is not the case at some of the other schools. Some students maybe going elsewhere since that is where they were accepted.</p>
<p>As stated above, the schools do not have the same program or emphasis on programs. Students go to the school where they feel the program best suits them. Sometimes people just want to go somewhere else to be cool, so they go to Michigan. Some of the schools in the Virginia and California systems have excellent programs, but you can not make that reference to all of the schools in those states as the article implied.</p>