'Losing A Generation': Fall College Enrollment Plummets For 1st-Year Students

ucbalumnus
Thu, 17 Dec 2020 22:53:38 +0000

Seems like there has been a downtrend over the last several years that may be accounting for much of the decline, although the COVID-19 situation could certainly have added to the decline (there is graph to that effect in the linked page).

Perhaps it is not surprising that lower SES students whose families are more likely to be under greater financial stress than before are more likely not to attend college, even though both lower and higher SES students include some who choose not to attend or defer college due to distance learning issues for them. Both COVID-19 and the associated economic effects have been more harmful to lower SES people than higher SES people on average.