ACT reports lowest average composite score in decades after number of test takers plunged

Just 1.35 million students who graduated from high school in 2022 took the entrance exam, compared to 2.1 million in the 2016 class.

By Jeremy Bauer-Wolf • Oct. 12, 2022

Why a state flagship will encourage all 30,000 of its students to open investment accounts

University of Kentucky athletes can now opt into new investment accounts. Program will scale up widely to prod more students to learn about finances.

By Laura Spitalniak • Oct. 7, 2022

Explore the Trendline➔

Student Engagement

Colleges focus on retention with a variety of steps designed to keep students committed to staying in school and completing their education.

By Higher Ed Dive staff

What colleges can learn from COVID-19 relief to improve other emergency aid programs

States and colleges should work together when promoting emergency aid for students, according to a new report from NASFAA and NASPA.

By Laura Spitalniak • Oct. 5, 2022

LGBTQ students with campus mental health services have lower suicide attempt rates, survey finds

But only 63% of polled students said that their college offered LGBTQ-specific services, according to The Trevor Project.

By Laura Spitalniak • Sept. 29, 2022

Why aren’t people going to college?

Many who didn’t enroll or finish degrees say college is too expensive — but they also cite stress and career uncertainty, new research finds.

By Rick Seltzer • Sept. 28, 2022

Texting and chatbot company Ocelot raises $117M

The company has pivoted in recent years from creating videos for colleges to providing chatbot and texting services for students.

By Natalie Schwartz • Sept. 28, 2022

The sale of student lists exacerbates inequity in the admissions process, reports say

Underrepresented students often get overlooked because colleges have the option to sift information by preferred demographics, according to TICAS.

By Laura Spitalniak • Sept. 23, 2022

IT certifications ease tech job access as employers lower degree requirements

The tech talent crunch has companies looking beyond academic credentials to meet workforce demand. For burgeoning IT pros, there’s a chance to level up. 

By Lindsey Wilkinson • Sept. 21, 2022

Making higher ed mobile: Catering to student demands for ease, speed and access

Higher ed leaders don't have to look far to woo students with the devices they can't live without: their smartphones.

Sept. 19, 2022

We agree with the surgeon general. The door to fixing college mental health is cracked, and it’s time to blow it open.

Two Lumina Foundation leaders take up Vivek Murthy's call to expand counseling services and address loneliness among college students.

By Zainab Okolo and Jamie Merisotis • Sept. 19, 2022

Gates Foundation pours $100M into college transformation effort

The five-year commitment flows through six intermediary organizations, which the foundation says is an evolution in its approach to grant-making.

By Rick Seltzer • Sept. 15, 2022

What colleges should do to keep degrees from being segregated

Students enter college with majors split by race and gender. They graduate the same way, a Georgetown Law Center on Poverty and Inequality report said.

By Laura Spitalniak • Sept. 15, 2022

Short-Term Pell didn’t make it into August’s CHIPS Act. Where does it go from here?

Several paths remain for expanding Pell Grants to programs as short as eight weeks, but they're unlikely, especially before November's midterms.

By Lilah Burke • Sept. 9, 2022

How one nonprofit is looking beyond ‘generic tools’ to help HBCUs boost retention

The Partnership for Education Advancement's CEO discusses working to boost technology at HBCUs and colleges that drive social mobility.

By Rick Seltzer • Sept. 9, 2022

Colleges prepare to expand programming when Pell Grants are reinstated for prison education in 2023

Programs will be required to support students holistically, with academic advising, career advising and easily transferable credits.

By Laura Spitalniak • Sept. 8, 2022

Over 1 in 20 students at a state flagship are caregivers, researchers found. They face these challenges.

Students with caregiving responsibilities were disproportionately women, receiving financial aid and attending college part time, researchers found.

By Laura Spitalniak • Sept. 8, 2022

Skills-based learning is the key to improving ROI in education

Colleges must make sure students leave with hands-on experience, not just theoretical understanding, argues the executive director of Turing School.

By Jeff Casimir • Sept. 6, 2022

Expand post-baccalaureate offerings to help diversify faculty, researchers say

More bridge programs between undergraduate and graduate studies can boost low-income students and students of color, according to Ithaka S+R.

By Laura Spitalniak • Sept. 1, 2022

Turn to these ABCs to help a generation of college students devastated by the pandemic

Reaching learners now means going beyond waiving standardized test scores, argues the provost of The College of Health Care Professions.

By Joanitt Montano • Aug. 22, 2022

College students who are parents face wide affordability gap, study finds

Parents making minimum wage must work 50-plus hours a week for tuition and child care. Colleges can help, but pay needs to rise, the Education Trust says.

By Lilah Burke • Aug. 19, 2022

How colleges can help neurodivergent students succeed

The dean of Beacon College's student success center discusses how the college navigated the pandemic and supports students with disabilities.

By Laura Spitalniak • Aug. 19, 2022

California bill advances to clamp down further on community colleges’ remedial courses

The measure builds on a law passed in 2017 requiring two-year institutions to steer most students into transfer-level classes.

By Jeremy Bauer-Wolf • Aug. 18, 2022

How can leaders bridge the gap between higher ed and employers?

Report suggests making culture changes in higher ed and finding places colleges and employers can share space.

By Lilah Burke • Aug. 17, 2022

Fluid students flowing in and out of education are higher ed’s future. Here’s how colleges must adapt.

The Universities at Shady Grove's executive director adapts the fluid fan idea reshaping the business of sports, shedding light on higher ed's future.

By Anne Khademian • Aug. 15, 2022

75% of master’s programs with high debt and low earnings are at private nonprofits

Urban Institute report undermines narrative that programs with poor student outcomes are all at for-profit colleges and in the humanities.

By Lilah Burke • Aug. 12, 2022