National Center for Education Statistics releases “Digest of Education Statistics, 2016”

In February, the National Center for Education Statistics released its annual Digest of Education Statistics. In this summary, I will list some key facts concerning enrollment trends for degree-granting postsecondary institutions.

• Fall enrollment increased 23% between 1995 and 2005 but only 14% between 2005 and 2015.
• Fall enrollment increased 20% between 2005 and 2010 but decreased 5% between 2010 and 2015.
• Undergraduate enrollment rose 14% from 2005 to 2015, and postbaccalaureate enrollment rose 17%.
• In 2015, 40% of 18- to 24-year-olds were enrolled, which was not measurably different from the percentage in 2005.
• The enrollment rate for Hispanic 18- to 24-year-olds rose from 25% in 2005 to 37% in 2015, but the rates for Whites (42%) and Blacks (35%) remained unchanged from 2005.
• From fall 1976 to fall 2015, the percentage of American college students who were Hispanic rose from 4% to 17%. Black students increased from 10% to 14%, and Asian/Pacific Islanders increased from 2% to 7%. The percentage of White students fell from 84% to 58%.
• In fall 2015, enrollment was lower than fall 2010 enrollment in 42 states.
• From 2015 to 2026, enrollment for students under age 25 will increase by 17% but by only 8% for students age 25 and over.
• In fall 2015, 15% of students took at least one distance education course; 14% took their college program exclusively through distance education courses; and 70% took no distance education courses.
• In fall 2015, 44% of institutions had fewer than 1,000 students, but those campuses enrolled only 4% of all college students. By contrast, 12% of campuses enrolled more than 10,000 students, and they accounted for 60% of total college enrollment.