A bad economy can be good news for colleges and universities.
Generally, when the economy falters, enrollment increases as people aim to further their knowledge and skills to either keep the job they have or get a new one.
The jump in enrollment has occurred at community colleges and universities in South Mississippi this summer, a trend that began last fall.
At Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, for example, there were 3,540 students enrolled last summer and 3,872 this year. That’s an increase of 9.4 percent.
But officials said they are actively recruiting students, not just counting on the economy to bring them in.
“We’ve been working really hard to get our enrollment up,” said Elaine Davis, counselor for special projects at MGCCC. “We usually get a lot of students during the summer who may attend a university during the year but want to stay at home and take classes during the summer.”
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