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New tool targets enrollment trends

Tool designed to help college administrators understand national trends impacting acceptance, enrollment

enrollment-college [1]A new interactive tool that uncovers nationwide trends in higher education is designed to help college administrators understand the trends impacting college enrollment, such as demographics and high school graduation rates.

Administrators also can use the tool, from enrollment growth management company Collegis Education, to compare rates at their college to other institutions.

The College Enrollment Trend tool uses data from the National Center of Education Statistics that examines the past 10 years. It shows college enrollment declined for the second year in a row in 2013, despite rising high school graduation rates. High school graduation rates reached 81 percent nationwide in 2012, yet college enrollments fell to 68 percent in 2012 and 66 percent in 2013.

(Next page: How administrators can use the tool to make more effective decisions)

The tool also shows that women across all demographics appear to enroll in college at higher rates than men. Enrollment in 2013 was 9 percent higher for women across all ethnic groups.

Enrollment rates for Hispanic high school graduates have also steadily increased over the past decade. Hispanic women, in particular, showed an enrollment rate of 68 percent in 2013-12 percent higher than in 2004.

“The number of high school graduates in the U.S. has steadily declined over the past few years, and projections for the future show the trend continuing,” said Bob King, managing director of the Enrollment Growth Management division at Collegis Education. “That means colleges and universities are competing for a shrinking pool of potential students. That statistic, however, doesn’t tell the whole story, which is why we wanted to create a tool to help higher education institutions of all sizes better understand what’s happening across higher education.”

The tool can help administrators navigate an increasingly competitive acceptance and enrollment process, too.

“Today’s higher education landscape is rapidly changing as access to high education improves and continues to grow,” King said. “With more competition comes the need for colleges and universities to better understand the trends that may be impacting their institution. This tool helps illustrate how different demographics compare on acceptance, enrollment and graduation rates and shows why many colleges and universities are having to rethink the type of student they should be pursuing to attend their institution. At Collegis Education, we understand the challenges higher education institutions face today, and we look forward to helping colleges and universities grow.”

To learn more about the College Enrollment Trends tool, visit http://www.collegiseducation.com/enrollment-trends.

Material from a press release was used in this report.