How the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted higher education

Over the past year, institutions of higher education have undergone unique crises and made unprecedented adjustments to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic. As colleges and universities shifted to fully online or hybrid instruction models, student enrollment rates have declined while campus-wide sanitation and testing costs have increased. Declines in student enrollment have hit community colleges especially hard, raising concerns about reversing progress on college access for socioeconomically disadvantaged students. Meanwhile, student enrollment in for-profit colleges, many of which offered fully online degrees before the pandemic, has grown. What will these enrollment shifts mean for future labor market prospects of impacted students? What is the true value of a college education and how will this shift in a post-pandemic world?

On March 16, the Brown Center on Education Policy at Brookings will host a webinar to address how institutions of higher education have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and what this might mean for their futures. Panelists will discuss the drop in enrollment rates, the potential rise of for-profit institutions, and how universities are engaging students during the pandemic.