Published by Diverse Issues in Higher Education
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As all sectors of society grapple with life under COVID-19, high school seniors planning to attend college in the fall are not only concerned about staying healthy, they’re now faced with numerous uncertainties about if, when and how classes will begin.
Two recent national surveys conducted in March found that the coronavirus pandemic was causing some prospective college students to reassess their previous decisions about college for financial and logistical reasons.
Research by the Baltimore-based Art & Science Group and Alexandria, Virginia-based SimpsonScarborough show that college-bound students are not confident they will attend the first choice of school and some are unsure if they would attend a four-year institution.
“In the wake of COVID-19, prospective students believe that their choices will likely become more restricted,” states the Art & Science survey, “Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on College-Going High School Seniors.” “These concerns seem to stem from a number of factors, first and foremost among these, financial.”
The Art & Science researchers found that “a disturbing number of the prospective students (one in six of our 4-year college-bound respondents) appear to be near the point of giving up on the idea of attending a 4-year college or university as a full-time student in the fall.” Researchers also noted that 17% of the 487 responders said they would definitely or most likely change their plans to attend a four-year institution on a full-time basis this fall and instead would like to take a “gap year” or enroll in a part-time program.
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Both of the surveys were taken in March and the results released around the end of the month. “We’re planning on revisiting it around May … so that we can make some comparisons,” Craig Goebel, a principal with Art & Science,” told Diverse, adding that the initial survey was conducted as a result of requests from educational institutions. “When the pandemic started to hit, we were getting a lot of calls from institutions and administrators, and we, ourselves were [noticing] this seems bigger than just a seasonal flu.”
Due to the rapidly changing conditions, Goebel said, “We developed the survey in a couple of days, we fielded it in four days and published it a couple of days later. It was all done with timing in mind.”
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