Poll Details Value Americans See in HigherEd; Highlights Fear of Debt.

In August and September of 2017, Civis Analytics, a leading data science technology and analytics company, polled 5647 Americans and 675 K-12 teachers about college. What they found should motivate any institution of higher education to take action and meet emerging concerns.

We’ve taken the time to sort out some of the key findings from the report so that you can use them on your campus as part of your planning.

Key findings from the report:

• The​ ​vast​ majority​ ​of​ ​Americans​ ​(86%)​ ​feel ​that ​higher​ ​education​ ​after​ ​high​ ​school​ ​enhances​ ​job​ ​prospects.
• Most​ ​(89%) ​also ​think​ ​high​ ​school​ ​students​ ​should​ ​pursue​ ​an​ ​education​ ​program​ ​after​ ​graduation​ ​from high ​school.
• Similarly, the majority of Americans (53%) say college degrees are worthwhile investments, overall.
• Strikingly, forty-two percent (42%) of Americans say college degrees are not worthwhile due to student debt and poor job prospects.
• Among those who are dissatisfied with four-year programs, the​ ​cost​ ​of​ ​four-year​ ​college​ ​programs​ is a leading concern (39%)

These changing trends about the perceived value of a degree are making an impact on how students and families make decisions about college.

In our experience, fear of student loan debt is keeping students and families from enrolling at their school of first choice.

What are you doing to meet those fears?

Fight fear of debt with a Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP) for your prospective students. You can find out more about how our university partners all over the country are doing just that by looking at these case studies.