The Southern Regional Education Board has released its 2021 Fact Book on Higher Education and has identified Mississippi as one of several states with a decline in college enrollment. While graduation rates have risen two points in recent years, post-secondary enrollments have fallen at a similar rate. Stephen Pruitt, President of the Regional Education Board, says the exception to this trend is a slight increase in the number of people with an associate's degree.
Pruitt says there has been a “4% increase between 2014-2019 in the number of working-age adults with associates degrees or higher. Not quite at the SREB average yet, but getting there. But if we don’t pay attention to the fact that we’ve gotta get more people into postsecondary opportunities, it can only hurt us over time.”
Experts say this decline in college enrollment can erode the state’s skilled workforce.
While the report does not directly link this decline to any one cause, experts say one major factor could be the cost of education. College expenses in Mississippi are close to the regional average. For a two-year college, it costs just over $3,000, while a four-year college averages around $8,000. But that can still be expensive for many students, says Stevie Lawrence, Vice President of Postsecondary Education.
“There’s always that notion of whether or not the upfront investment, is it really worth the return in the long run,” says Lawrence. “There’s data to show that it is, but I think it’s important to make sure there’s the correct messaging around those returns, and making sure the communities that need college the most are hearing those messages.”
According to the Regional Education Board, people with bachelor’s degrees earn nearly 80% more on average than those with a high school diploma or GED.
