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College and University Enrollment in 2021

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) provides a lot of snapshot reports of national education data, but it also produces projections of educational statistics out ten years that can prove useful.  Unfortunately, they're always a couple years behind the curve, so this is from the 2012 report (the 2013 report is out, but only available in pdf format.)

It tells an interesting story of college enrollment that can be helpful as we look into the future.  By 2021, overall enrollment will increase with the US population; it will still be mostly Caucasian students, although that majority will have shrunk; and Hispanics will have overtaken African-Americans as the second largest ethnic group.

If your institution isn't thinking about the future, and especially if your administration is still dominated by people who went to college in the 1960's and 1970's, you should show them this.

Is this a case of everything changing?  Or everything staying the same?  Let me know what you think.



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