A New Problem With Four-Year Degrees: The Surge in College Closures

When colleges close, the fallout for students can be catastrophic. It’s happening more often. Over 500 private, nonprofit four-year institutions have closed in the last 10 years, according to the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association. That is three times what it was in the decade prior. Rachel Burns, a senior policy analyst at SHEEO, estimates at least 1.25 million students were affected by these closures. (Many more for-profit institutions have closed in this period as well.)