No sector has more riding on the new college earnings test than community colleges. Students are betting on short-term credentials as a faster, cheaper path to a good job or a better one. More of them are placing that bet at a community college.
Community colleges enrolled about 750,000 certificate students last fall, up 28% in four years, with their overall enrollment growing 3.1% this year. Enrollment in undergraduate certificate programs grew 10% last spring, the most of any undergraduate credential. The new Workforce Pell program adds to that momentum for community college.
Until now, students couldn’t easily tell which programs pay off. A Texas study of more than 900,000 students shows why that matters.
