Colleges are very good at telling families what they want them to know. This week, I look at what they may not be telling you.

Record enrollment doesn't necessarily mean financial strength if a college had to heavily discount tuition to fill its classrooms. A new affordability program isn't automatically good news if the institution is already losing money.

And when a college doesn't announce its fall enrollment numbers while competitors are celebrating theirs, families should start asking questions. My message throughout the show is simple: don't confuse college marketing with college financial health.

I also examine the growing flight toward larger, selective, and recognizable college brands, the continued prevalence of test-optional admissions, and the expansion of direct admissions.

I compare unsolicited college admission offers to the old credit-card solicitation model: colleges increasingly approach students who never applied and invite them to spend money at their institution.

My larger point is that a college education can have tremendous value, but families need to look beyond scholarships, rankings, enrollment announcements, and marketing claims. They should investigate financial health, graduation rates, enrollment trends, and institutional stability before committing—which is exactly the purpose behind the College Viability Inspection Report, My College Decision Lens, and the Reverse FAFSA concept.

Show notes and links:

College Viability Inspection Report
My College Decision Lens

ISU experiences nearly 2% decline in enrollment for fall 2026

SIU enrollment sees ‘historic’ increase, university says

What demographic cliff? Colleges post enrollment highs as affordability pays off

Best Colleges for Rural America

Everyone talks about the plight of small, regional colleges on the brink of closure - but who's actually growing in this challenging market?

The Ivies Brought Back Test Scores, but 90% of Colleges Still Don’t Require Them

 This episode of This Week in College Viability examines a corner of higher education that may serve as a warning sign for broader problems across the industry: naturopathic medicine, acupuncture, and other alternative and allied-health professional programs. Gary Stocker is joined by Ryan Hofer and Bex Groebner to discuss how new federal graduate loan limits, credential inflation, weak graduate earnings, accreditation practices, and declining enrollment could fundamentally reshape these programs.
 
Hofer and Groebner also challenge the credential inflation that has pushed some professions toward expensive graduate and doctoral degrees without comparable increases in earnings. Declining enrollment, borrowing restrictions, demographic pressures, and greater scrutiny of return on investment could force specialized colleges to lower tuition, redesign programs, consolidate, or close. 

The broader issue is student and consumer transparency. Hofer and Groebner argue that accreditors, licensing boards, and colleges need to provide families with clearer information about graduate earnings, student debt, employment outcomes, and institutional financial health. Prospective students should not accept vague claims such as “our graduates do very well”; they should demand the data behind those statements and investigate a college before committing their time and money.

The episode ultimately raises a question that extends far beyond alternative medicine: When high tuition, heavy borrowing, weak earnings, credential inflation, and declining enrollment collide, does the degree still make financial sense for the student buying it?

Ryan's Substack:   https://debtbynaturalcauses.substack.com/

Bex's Substack:  https://needlingtogettothepoint.substack.com/

"Some Graduate Schools Never Pay Off"
https://www.theheagroup.com/blog/grad-schools-debt

In this episode of This Week in College Viability, I take on what I call college “spin season”—the annual flood of upbeat enrollment announcements, welcome-back videos, and optimistic press releases that arrive as a new academic year begins. 

I don't object to colleges celebrating their students or their successes. What concerns me is what those announcements sometimes leave out.
 
While some institutions are celebrating new students, other college leaders may be privately confronting serious questions about whether they have enough financial resources to remain viable. I also challenge the college admissions conversation for largely ignoring financial health. Families hear plenty about campus fit, admissions, scholarships, and student experiences, but rarely are they encouraged to investigate whether a college has the financial capacity to deliver what it is promising.

I put several recent enrollment announcements through that financial-health lens. At Avila University, for example, I point out that enrollment and student revenues have increased, but expenses have grown considerably faster than revenues and the institution has accumulated substantial operating losses. 

I also look behind positive announcements from Westminster College in Pennsylvania and York College of Pennsylvania, showing why a single year's incoming-class announcement needs to be compared with longer-term enrollment and financial trends. I then review College Viability Inspection Report results for institutions including UA Little Rock, Wabash College, Simpson University, Beloit College, Spring Hill College, Dalton State, and Rider University. My point isn't that every positive college announcement is misleading. It's that families need an independent source of information that provides the other side of the story.

Show notes:

Take a look at the College Viability Inspection Reports for theses colleges;

Show notes College Viability Inspection Report links to many of these stories

UA Little Rock Red Flags: 5 of 9     2017-2024 FTE down 28% 
https://inspection.mycollegeviability.com/colleges/university-of-arkansas-at-little-rock-ar/ 

Wabash College IN – needs to get expenses under control  9 of 9 GREEN

https://inspection.mycollegeviability.com/colleges/wabash-college-in/

Simpson University (CA)   Not reporting Pell equity gap data  5 of 8 Red flags

https://inspection.mycollegeviability.com/colleges/simpson-university-ca/

Beloit College WI   6 of 9 GREEN

https://inspection.mycollegeviability.com/colleges/beloit-college-wi/

Spring Hill College (AL)  7 / 9 RED flags  PDS College Financial Compass:  13/15 key measures flagged

https://inspection.mycollegeviability.com/colleges/spring-hill-college-al/

Dalton State (GA)   4YGR averages < 10%

https://inspection.mycollegeviability.com/colleges/dalton-state-college-ga/

Rider U NJ    5 of 9 red flags

https://inspection.mycollegeviability.com/colleges/rider-university-nj/

In this week's episode of This Week in College Viability News and Commentary, I start with a personal observation—watching parents take their children to the first day of elementary school. It reminded me how much time families spend preparing children for college, but how little time we spend asking whether the college is ready for our children.

That question frames this week's stories, including degree cuts at the University of Nebraska, reduced Washington State financial aid for students attending private colleges, budget reallocations at Clemson University, and William Jewell College's declaration that it has exited financial exigency. At William Jewell, I compare that optimistic announcement with independent financial data that continues to raise concerns. My message to families is straightforward: inspect before you invest, trust verified data, compare colleges, judge outcomes, ask informed questions, demand transparency, and evaluate today's college—not yesterday's reputation.

I also examine the University of Tulsa's decision to cut its published tuition by more than half, Saint Michael's College receiving court approval to access restricted endowment funds, concerns about students arriving at college academically unprepared, and the federal government's growing emphasis on whether college programs actually produce adequate earnings for graduates.

Together, these stories point to the same fundamental pressure: colleges need revenue while families, governments, and employers are increasingly demanding evidence of value. I believe families should evaluate not only whether a degree will deliver an acceptable return, but whether the institution delivering that degree is financially viable enough to fulfill its promises. Higher education still offers tremendous value to millions of students, but the economics are changing. There are too many colleges competing for too few academically prepared and financially capable students, and that imbalance will continue to drive program cuts, restructuring, closures, mergers, and consolidation.

In the August 10th  episode, I continue to examine the financial health of higher education and argue that the warning signs facing many colleges are becoming impossible to ignore. I discuss layoffs and budget cuts at institutions including Minnesota State Mankato, St. John's University, Illinois Institute of Technology, St. Louis University, Temple University, Harvard University, and others, pointing out that these announcements all share a common theme: financial pressure. 

I challenge the way colleges and the media celebrate enrollment gains without discussing the far more important metric of net tuition revenue, arguing that enrollment alone does not pay the bills. 

I also note the continued use of generic institutional messaging and strategic plans that sound nearly identical from one campus to the next, reinforcing my belief that too many colleges have become commodities competing for a shrinking pool of students. 

I also explore several broader trends reshaping higher education. I compare direct admissions programs—where colleges admit students who never applied—to unsolicited credit card offers, arguing that they are primarily marketing tools designed to fill enrollment gaps.

I revisit Howard University, defending its long-term financial strength despite recent enrollment management mistakes, and explain why its employee buyout program appears to be a proactive financial decision rather than a sign of institutional distress.

Finally, I encourage students and families to use my upcoming My College Decision Lens to evaluate colleges based on independent financial data rather than marketing claims, because I believe better information leads to better college decisions. 

This week we look at:

+ Summer ‘Spin’ Award Winner - so far

+ Howard University can’t catch a break

+ Perfect finances and a WASC Warning?

+ The market will dictate accreditation changes

Show Notes:
2026 College Majors Completion App for Academic Leaders
2026 College Viability App for Research and Media

Chatham University Prepares to Welcome Largest Undergraduate Class Ever

502 students lose spots at Howard University over tuition payments just weeks before classes start

Under pressure from its accreditor, University of Valley Forge offers students information on transferring

Albright College gets OK for tax-exempt bonds as it moves to restructure $42M in debt

3 Programmatic Accreditors Withdraw From Federal Recognition

A Perfect Federal Score, a Top-Tier Forbes Grade, and a WASC Warning

Lawmakers Seek Stronger College Accreditation Standards to Protect Student Loan Borrowers

In this podcast episode, I examine several important developments that illustrate the growing financial pressures facing higher education. 

I begin by discussing three San Francisco Bay Area colleges that have received serious warnings from their accreditor to improve both their financial performance and student outcomes. 

I also explore the story of Northland College in Wisconsin, where donor-restricted endowment funds were used to help keep the institution operating before it ultimately closed. While the actions may have been legal, I question the ethical implications and argue that financially distressed colleges often find themselves making increasingly difficult decisions simply to survive.

I also discuss several national issues that I believe will shape the future of higher education. I review proposed federal changes to accreditation and explain why I believe today's accreditation system already does too little to evaluate either academic quality or financial health. I highlight Moody's decision to downgrade Brown University's outlook to negative as evidence that even well-resourced institutions face significant financial challenges, and I review new research from Dr. Robert Kelchen that demonstrates how long-term operating losses, enrollment declines, and weakening financial trends can help identify colleges at greater risk. 

Michael Hromadka is deeply interested in the connections between work, education, opportunities, and options - and the systems that control those things.  He says: "At the end of the day, it'd be nice if those systems made our lives easier and better, instead of harder and worse."

We explore his unique perspective on college with questions like:  What is the purpose of college?  How do you de-risk the college decision?  How can college improve career preparation?  And more . . . . 

Hromadka's website, Tenonprep.com, provides a series of video clips on improving higher education.

In this episode, I discuss the growing financial pressures facing colleges and universities across the country, highlighting another week filled with layoffs, hiring freezes, budget cuts, and program reductions. I examine institutions including LSU, UCLA, Rutgers, Temple, the University of Texas at Tyler, Albertus Magnus College, the University of Vermont, Defiance College, and Albright College, arguing that these stories are no longer isolated incidents but evidence of a higher education sector facing long-term structural decline. 

I also explain why accreditation warnings—particularly those related to financial stability—should be viewed seriously by students and families, even if colleges insist they have turnaround plans in place. Throughout the episode, I encourage listeners to look beyond institutional messaging and focus instead on publicly available financial data, graduation rates, endowment strength, and long-term financial sustainability when evaluating colleges.

I also explore several broader trends that I believe will shape the future of higher education. I discuss a new U.S. Department of Education rule requiring specialized accreditors to justify degree inflation in fields such as pharmacy, physical therapy, and occupational therapy by proving additional educational requirements provide meaningful public benefit.  

I close by reinforcing one of my core messages: too many colleges are enrolling students they know are unlikely to graduate simply to generate tuition revenue. I argue that colleges with persistently low four-year graduation rates are failing both students and families, and I preview two upcoming initiatives—My College Decision Lens and The College Outlook Letter—which are designed to help students, families, and higher education stakeholders make more informed, data-driven decisions about the future of colleges.