I read about Willamette’s decline in enrollment in this article from Oct. 2019:
https://www.opb.org/news/article/willamette-university-enrollment-decline/
Some of the things the article mentioned were:
“Fewer students led to cuts: Willamette’s workforce shrank by 8% from 2014 to 2016, leaving the school with 200 fewer employees. Faculty have noticed some changes, including restructuring of senior capstone requirements, rearrangement of elective courses and larger classes, all aimed at allowing the school to operate with fewer teachers. Professors said the university has avoided layoffs but has also left positions open after staff leave or retire.”
And:
““We have not been able to expand some student services as much as we would have liked in order to accommodate increasing demand for them… This seems particularly true in health care, especially mental health services, and career services.’”
I also noticed that Willamette accepted an all-time high of 89% (!) of students this year. In 2012, they accepted 57% of students. It looks like one of their strategies to gain more students, and more enrollment money, is to admit nearly everyone.
My daughter really likes WU, but has other good college choices-- ones that aren’t in a place of financial difficulty. She feels really torn about her final college decision.
I’m concerned about how the drop in enrollment will effect her if she enrolls. I’m not quite as concerned that the school will close, like some of the other OR schools in the area (Concordia, Mercyhurst, OR School of Arts and Craft), but I am concerned that the quality of the Willamette will drop while it struggles to recover-- less teachers, less selective student body, less student resources, etc.
I am pretty certain that she will need good access to mental health services for anxiety, and am hearing that it can take awhile to get an appointment with mental health services, and there is also a fee for appointments.
I wonder if anyone has thoughts or experiences to share.