Wisconsin Colleges Continue to See a Demographics Problem

Tuesday, July 2nd, 2024 -- 9:01 AM

(Kelly Meyerhofer, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) Wisconsin colleges have a well-documented demographics problem.

According to Kelly Meyerhofer with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, smaller and smaller graduating high school classes have left colleges scrambling to fill seats, squeezing budgets and making painful cuts.

New research on marriage trends and household sizes by the Marquette University Law School's Lubar Center on Public Policy reinforces the demographic challenge facing universities, which aren't only competing with each other for students.

They're also competing with businesses recruiting students right into the workforce, and families questioning the time and, especially, the cost of a college degree. The percentage of Wisconsin high school graduates going directly to college is plummeting.

In 2022-23, it was less than 52%. That’s down about 10 percentage points from six years ago, according to state Department of Public Instruction data. It's a trend experts say could threaten Wisconsin's economic competitiveness.

The non-college going trend has always existed, and tends to increase when the labor market is strong, said Rachel Burns, a senior policy analyst with the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association. But Burns thinks there's more to the current dynamic than the robust economy.

"I think it's also just a cultural shift that we're experiencing," she said. "We're recognizing college is not for everyone and you can be successful without college. There are other opportunities for students, and college might not be the best path. I think that used to be sort of stigmatized, and I think that's becoming more accepted."

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