"As many as a fifth of students who had been planning to start college in the fall may not attend, according to a new survey. The reason: diminished family finances because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The survey was conducted by Simpson Scarborough, a higher ed consulting firm based in Alexandria, Virginia. It tallied responses from 573 high school students who had been planning to attend a four-year residential college in the fall.
More than half the respondents, 53%, said their families’ finances had been affected by the pandemic. Simpson Scarborough also surveyed 513 current college freshmen, sophomores and juniors. Among that group, 41% said their families’ finances had been impacted by the virus." …