Growth is no longer found in your traditional funnels. The new majority—the new lifeblood of enrollment—is concentrated in markets many institutions still treat as an afterthought:
- Adult Learners: Seeking to upskill in a volatile economy their enrollment is up 10%. They require flexible online and stackable options that respect their competing priorities.
- Dual Enrollment Students: Ambitious high schoolers are accelerating their path to a degree with enrollment surging 8.8%. You must build structured pipelines to capture this market,
- The SCNC Population: The 43.1 million Americans with "Some College No Credential" are not a statistic; they are a call to action. The old system failed them once. They represent the single most significant enrollment opportunity of the coming decade for institutions that can provide tailored pathways and adult-first design.
Institutions that fail to transform their programs marketing and support services for this new reality will not just stagnate; they will become irrelevant. Download the full report to turn these populations into your institution's new lifeblood.
The Value Question Has Become a Value Crisis
The data is undeniable: a college degree maintains a strong correlation with higher employment rates and a massive income premium. Households led by adults with a bachelor's degree earned a median income of $132,700 in 2024—more than double the $58,400 earned by those with only a high school diploma.
Yet public perception tells a different story. Public skepticism of higher education’s value continues to deepen. The share of Americans who believe a college degree is "very important" has plummeted from three-quarters in 2010 to just 35% today.
A passive defense of the status quo is a losing battle. You must aggressively transparently and relentlessly prove your return on investment to every prospective student
This crisis is magnified by a labor market that no longer values all degrees equally. Underemployment rates vary wildly by major highlighting a structural mismatch between many academic programs and market demand.
Majors like Nursing (9.7%) and Computer Engineering (17.0%) show strong labor market alignment. Meanwhile graduates in Liberal Arts (56.5%) and Performing Arts (62.3%) face significantly higher rates of underemployment.
This is a mandate for courageous leadership: you must implement a rigorous data-driven process to evaluate program offerings investing in those that provide clear pathways to high-mobility careers and sunsetting those that do not.
Don't Just Defend Your Value. Prove It.
Download our full 2026 Landscape of Higher Education Report to unlock data-driven strategies built to thrive in an era of unprecedented skepticism.
AI Has Shattered the Funnel
The most potent accelerant of this disruption is Artificial Intelligence. AI has fundamentally rewired how students search discover and decide. The era of predictable keyword-driven SEO is over. We are now in the age of Search Everywhere Optimization.
- An estimated 73% of education-related queries are now answered by AI Overviews not a list of links.
- Prospective students get answers about your programs cost and reputation without ever visiting your website.
- Discovery now happens on YouTube TikTok and Reddit where Modern Learners seek authentic testimonials and deep-dive reviews.
Your digital presence is no longer a series of siloed campaigns. It is an interconnected library feeding an entirely new audience of AI agents algorithms and bots. Failing to feed these algorithms a clear consistent narrative about your value is the marketing equivalent of building a skyscraper on sand. You risk becoming completely invisible to the next generation of learners.
Navigating this new terrain requires a new blueprint: The EducationDynamics AI Visibility Pyramid
This strategic framework shows how sustainable revenue growth is only possible when built on a solid foundation of Brand Amplification (optimizing your entire digital footprint) and Reputation (earned media and third-party sentiment).
The Accelerating Pace of Closures
A sobering reality underscores the urgency of this moment: institutional closures are accelerating. Since 2016 more than 90 nonprofit colleges and over 450 for-profit institutions have closed their doors. This is not a distant problem for small rural colleges; regional privates and tuition-dependent institutions are increasingly at risk. Unsustainable discount rates mounting infrastructure costs and high employee expenses are outpacing revenue growth. This is the ultimate consequence of inaction. Closures should serve as a wake-up call for the entire sector: the business model of higher education is shifting and those who delay adaptation will become tomorrow's cautionary headline.
A Mandate for Transformative Leadership
This is not business as usual. This is a mandate for a fundamental institution-wide shift in strategy. The future belongs to institutions that take control of their narrative and align their strategies around what moves the needle.
The path forward requires transformation across three dimensions:
- Portfolio: You must have the courage to invest in high-demand career-oriented programs while sunsetting underperforming offerings that no longer serve a clear market need.
- Positioning: The Modern Learner has erased the lines between student populations. They demand a unified message focused on three things: cost convenience and career outcomes.
- Proof: You must lead the conversation on value. Move beyond vague platitudes and use your outcomes data to build an unassailable case for your institution's enduring value.
