First-year enrollment increased last fall, correcting findings from an earlier report that claimed a 5% decline, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research center.
While this is the first time overall undergraduate enrollment is up post-pandemic, public and private nonprofit four-year institutions seeking freshmen students must take this data with a grain of salt, according to preliminary data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.
National Student Clearinghouse found first-year students have a 67.2% retention rate, besting pre-pandemic averages. NSCRC defines retention as students who remain at a given institution for their second year instead of transferring, which counts toward persistence.
At least 33 data breaches have been disclosed so far, affecting more than 17.5 million people 200 organizations, many of them colleges, universities and related organizations.
Since Spring 2020, non-degree offerings at for-profit colleges have exploded by 115%, contributing to the sector's third consecutive year of positive enrollment growth.
Reports by National Student Clearinghouse Research Center and YouthTruth suggest that male enrollment has declined faster than women for the past five years and only 57% of young men graduating high school in 2023 expect to go to college.
"Our findings suggest that the transfer application process reflects the inequitable state of higher education," wrote the authors of the Common App transfer report.
First-time undergraduate earners made up 86% of the 58,800 drop in total credential earners, which "marks the largest decline in first-time graduates since 2012-13," according to the report.
