Show Notes
American colleges and universities are in an admissions crunch. A looming demographic cliff means fewer 18-year-olds are applying, leaving schools scrambling to fill budget holes and chart a new path forward. WSJ education reporters Doug Belkin and Roshan Fernandez join host Alex Ossola to discuss why this is happening now and how three institutions are handling the problem.
Further Reading:
America’s Colleges Are Hurtling Toward an Enrollment Cliff
America’s College Towns Go From Boom to Bust
The Small Private Colleges Dying in a Winner-Take-All University Marketplace
Why Syracuse Can’t Attract the Students It Needs to Pay the Bills
The New Students at This Liberal Arts College Are in Their 80s
Hampshire Students Navigate the Chaos of a College Shutting Down
In Demand: The Colleges Where Students Start Jobs Right Away
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
More from WSJ What’s News
A.M. Edition for Oct. 23. The tech selloff shows signs of easing at the end of a rollercoaster week, even as signs of stress in the AI trade continued overnight, after one of the boom’s biggest winners SK Hynix halted a planned U.S. IPO of its memory-chip business. Plus, as politicians across the country push back against AI projects, WSJ reporter Joe Wallace explains why it’s creating a conflict with pension fund investments, which have raked in billions of dollars for Americans in AI-fueled returns. And New York City Council has voted to ban horse carriages, saying they will shut down the industry in 2028. Daniel Bach hosts.
P.M. Edition for Oct. 22. Investors dump stocks connected to the AI buildout and buy up almost everything else, giving Treasury yields their biggest drop since 2023. Plus, while the price of oil keeps going up, your home heating bill may be cheaper this winter. Journal commodities reporter Ryan Dezember tells us what’s holding down the price of natural gas—and whether that can last. And WSJ personal finance reporter Oyin Adedoyin explains why more students are turning to private lenders to fund their education. Alex Ossola hosts.
A.M. Edition for Oct. 22. As the U.S. and Israel signal a possible escalation, Middle Eastern mediators scramble to give new life to talks with Iran. While President Trump said he won’t attack before the midterms, WSJ’s Middle East correspondent Benoit Faucon said he’s recently sounded some hawkish notes. Plus, tech stocks sell off globally after a bevy of earnings releases from AI companies disappoint investors and put an abrupt stop to Wednesday’s relief rally. And Mark Zuckerberg agrees to stay in California, for now, as Meta splits its stock to potentially help him pay a future tax bill. Luke Vargas hosts.
P.M. Edition for Oct. 21. Toyota’s RAV4 had long been the most popular SUV in the U.S. But now, as autos reporter Chris Otts discusses, production decisions from the Japanese carmaker undermined that leader status. Plus, Journal Ukraine bureau chief Marcus Walker fills us in on what’s happening on the battlefield. And security researchers, with the help of AI, discovered a vulnerability that puts up to 70% of the world’s websites at risk. Alex Ossola hosts.
A.M. Edition for Oct. 21. Elon Musk says Tesla and SpaceX are discussing a potential tie up that would create a $3.5 trillion tech giant. Plus, the U.K. says yes to more North Sea gas as the Iran war raises energy-security concerns and pushes inflation higher. And the CEO of staffing company Randstad tells us who’s hiring in a relatively quiet labor market, and what can be done to fix the mess that’s applying for a new job. Luke Vargas hosts.