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A letter in Nature responds to Marc Schmitt's argument that universities should train students to actively argue with AI models and grade that interaction. The correspondence contends that assessing only AI-assisted performance is incomplete, citing a randomized trial of secondary-school math students in which chatbot access boosted practice scores but reduced scores on a later unassisted exam.
A new Gallup survey asking how important a college education is found 'very important' responses have fallen to less than a third, down from 70% in 2013. 'Not too important' responses rose roughly fivefold over the same period, from 6% to nearly 30%. Gallup reports the decline occurred across all demographic groups, including those historically most favorable to college, such as Democrats and groups with traditionally strong support.
A Nature commentary argues that short-term academic visits to China can help maintain scholarly collaboration amid wider geopolitical strain. The piece suggests such visits as a practical alternative when longer-term exchanges or partnerships face obstacles.
The National Education Association's State Funding Update found state appropriations for higher education hit $129 billion in FY2025, up 4% year-over-year, but inflation-adjusted growth was only 2%. Seventeen states saw funding decline once inflation was factored in, and 12 states still haven't recovered to pre-pandemic inflation-adjusted funding levels. Many public universities also never fully restored per-student funding lost after the 2008 financial crisis.
New data indicates that the long-running growth in college administrative staffing may be reversing. At Louisiana State University, an incoming president announced the layoff of 25 administrators, some in senior roles, redirecting the resulting savings toward faculty hiring and research.
Inside Higher Ed has tracked more than 9,000 job cuts and buyouts across US higher education in 2025, driven by falling international enrollment, state funding reductions, federal funding uncertainty and rising costs. The University of North Texas disclosed a projected $45 million deficit and plans to eliminate or consolidate over 70 academic programs, while East Carolina University is cutting $8.5 million more as part of a three-year, $25 million reduction plan after already discontinuing 44 programs.
In an interview, Christa Acampora, dean of the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences at the University of Virginia, discussed mounting scrutiny of liberal arts degrees as entry-level jobs shrink, tuition rises, and AI reshapes work. She addressed job prospects for liberal arts graduates and made the case for why humanities education remains significant in an AI-driven world.
A commentary on higher education argues that top-tier institutions can no longer coast on prestige alone to attract students. Instead, it says these schools are adopting strategies long used by luxury brands to build lasting customer relationships, focusing on creating an overall experience rather than just a credential.
Nature interviewed eight higher-education leaders and consultants about the condition of UK universities as roughly 518,000 new students, including around 300,000 aged 18, begin term this week. Nearly 40% of institutions are forecast to run a deficit this financial year amid falling funding and shifting enrollment patterns. While the panel disagreed on whether degrees still offer value and whether the situation constitutes a full-blown crisis, they converged on two points: the current financial model cannot continue, and universities are not prepared for the disruption artificial intelligence will bring.
After losing hundreds of thousands of students during the pandemic, community colleges are now seeing sustained enrollment growth, with 5.8 million students enrolled in spring 2026, a 5.2% increase from spring 2021, according to National Student Clearinghouse Research Center data. Researchers say students who left during the pandemic did not simply transfer to four-year universities, which also saw declines among 18- to 24-year-olds.
A contributor writing for Entrepreneur argues that universities are structurally too slow to keep pace with AI-driven shifts in workforce skills, citing 18-month approval cycles for new degree programs and 9-to-12-month faculty hiring timelines. The piece introduces the concept of a 'university intrapreneur' — faculty, staff, administrators or students who solve problems and build solutions from within an institution before official policy or funding catches up, launching this as the first in a series on the topic.
An Inside Higher Ed analysis found at least 16 nonprofit colleges shut down in 2025 due to falling enrollment and financial strain, following 28 degree-granting institutions that closed in the first nine months of 2024 alone, according to Hechinger Report data. Entrepreneur's coverage argues these closures are not isolated incidents but the culmination of years of compounding pressures — declining tuition revenue, rising costs, debt and accreditation issues.