College of Education graduate program enrollment sinks in face of recession in NEWS by James Gingerich, Northern Arizona News

Some graduate programs have not experienced the boom so many graduate schools see during a recession, in fact, they have seen a marked decrease in enrollment. The hardest hit of the programs is the graduate College of Education. In the past decade, enrollment has decreased by 41%, almost exclusively in online extended campuses and Yuma location. Some of this can be attributed to increased competition as for-profit colleges, such as University of Phoenix, expand their graduate education programs, but this is not the only contributing factor. “A prolonged recession, such as the one we are experiencing, can have the opposite effect [of a shorter recession] especially with the growth-rate in higher paying jobs being slow,” said Ramona Mellott, dean of NAU’s Graduate College. She stated a long economic downturn can also erode the confidence of students and make it less likely they will want to take on additional debt. http://northernarizonanews.com/blog/2012/11/27/college-of-education-enrollment-sinks-in-face-of-recession/