Undergraduate Enrollment Growth Decelerates, Graduate Enrollment Falls in Fall 2026

Preliminary data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center shows undergraduate enrollment growth slowed to 0.6% in Fall 2026, down from 2.4% the prior year. Concurrently, graduate enrollment decreased by 1.6% overall, with master's programs seeing a 3.7% drop, potentially linked to new caps on graduate student loans. This trend indicates a shift in higher education enrollment patterns.