The Education Department's National Center for Education Statistics released a report Tuesday showing the steady growth in enrollment in colleges and universities during the past several years slowed in 2010.
In 2009, 21 million students were enrolled in postsecondary school, 18.1 million students as undergraduates and 2.8 million in graduate school, according to the report. The study indicated 21.6 million students enrolled in colleges and universities throughout the nation in 2010. Undergraduate students made up roughly 18.6 million of those enrolled, with the remaining 3 million enrolled in graduate school.
Although the number of students enrolled in colleges was slightly higher in 2010 than in 2009, it represented a decrease in the rate of enrollment growth.
Economics and Education Prof. Sarah Turner said the increase in the number of students pursuing graduate schools can be attributed to the 2008 recession, which made education an attractive alternative to those unable to find work. "Two things have gone on in the last three years: People have lost their jobs and young people are facing tougher labor markets," she said. "It is a better option for those laid off to gain more skills and retool for different industries in such times, hence an older group of students."
Actual enrollment in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences remained steady during the early years of the decade and "enrollment in the Graduate School [of Arts and Sciences] grew by 10 percent between 2008 and 2010," said Philip Zelikow, associate dean for the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
Briana Webber, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences admissions specialist, said the number of applications received for the University's Graduate School of Arts and Sciences rose from 4,727 in 2009 to 5,374 in 2010.
The University has been working to increase its appeal to Doctorate applicants, Zelikow said. "All Ph.D's will be fully funded by this year, including their stipends, wages and tuition," he said, adding this will make the programs "really competitive for applicants."
The report also demonstrated growth in the number of students using financial aid and loans to cover the costs of postsecondary education.
"Of the 3.3 million full-time, first-time undergraduate students attending Title IV institutions during the 2009-10 academic year, about 82 percent received financial aid," according to the report. "Institutions reported that roughly 53 percent of full-time, first-time undergraduate students borrowed through a student education loan program during the 2009-10 academic year."
Fifty-nine percent of the University's entering undergraduate class received financial aid in 2009, according to the NCES website.
The results of the study reflect data collected from 7,259 postsecondary education schools who participate in Title IV federal student financial aid programs.
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