Financial Health of Colleges

I recently attended the New Jersey Association for College Admission Counseling (NJACAC) program on “Admissions Trends”. One trend is that a growing number of small liberal arts colleges are having financial difficulties. A panelist suggested that potential students and their parents be on the look for signs of poor financial health including:

  1. Significant deferred maintenance
  2. Faculty and staff layoffs
  3. Closed programs
  4. Dropping of varsity or extra-curricular activities
  5. Closed residence halls
  6. Downgraded bond ratings.