Your Future May Look Smaller

Yes, your future may be smaller. Demography is destiny for day schools, and even boarding schools and universities are not immune to the enrollment challenges structural factors create. This chart in Jeffrey Selingo’s blog from the Chronicle of Higher Education illustrates the looming demographic cliff that U.S. colleges and universities face. Note that the downslope is expected to continue until 2040!

From the Chronicle of Higher Education

 The implications for higher education are obvious. For our clients in the private, independent K-12 sector, you have already been facing the challenge as each next year’s high school graduates move through your schools. For some, perhaps many, schools, the solution lies in strategically becoming smaller—sooner rather than later. Better marketing cannot ignore these harsh realities. [See this article for a case example of what happens when leaders assume structural problems have market solutions.]