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Stevens Strategy We are a full-service consulting firm specializing in managing the process of strategic change at co

Stevens Strategy is a full-service management consulting firm specializing in managing the process of strategic change at higher and secondary education institutions. We will be the firm colleges, universities and schools call when they must make critical decisions about their future.

Just the Facts: The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center’s Time to Degree report shows how enrollment interrup...
10/23/2026

Just the Facts: The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center’s Time to Degree report shows how enrollment interruptions and transfer shape the journey to a credential.

Examining students who earned undergraduate credentials in 2024–25, the report distinguishes total elapsed time from time actively enrolled. The findings describe completers, rather than the likelihood that all entering students will graduate. Additional insights include:

🔶 Median time to a first credential was 3.7 years for bachelor’s degrees, 3.0 years for associate degrees, and 2.3 years for certificates. Yet 13.5% of first-time bachelor’s earners and more than one-quarter of associate and certificate earners took seven or more years.

🔶 Bachelor’s earners with no stopouts finished in a median of 3.7 years. That rose to 5.1 years with one stopout, 7.3 years with two, and more than 10 years with three or more. A stopout means an enrollment break longer than 123 days.

🔶 Community college transfer students took a median of 5.7 years to earn a bachelor’s degree, compared with 3.7 years for non-transfers. Among transfers, 56.4% had at least one stopout, compared with 23.6% of non-transfers.

🔶 Interruptions were associated with more time actively enrolled, too. Associate degree earners with no stopouts spent 2.2 years enrolled, compared with 4.3 years for those with three stopouts and 5.2 years for those with more than three.

Returning to college does not always mean picking up where a student left off. Institutions should examine what returning and transferring students encounter when they try to resume: which credits apply, whether required courses are available, and how quickly they can secure advising and financial aid. The distinction between elapsed and enrolled time matters because a delayed finish can involve both years away and additional terms paying for college. Clear degree maps, course schedules, and credit evaluations can help students understand their remaining path. The useful question is where institutional processes add avoidable time and cost to a journey that may already include work, caregiving, and financial pressures.

Just the Facts: EAB’s latest analysis finds that AI is influencing which colleges students discover, consider, and remov...
10/22/2026

Just the Facts: EAB’s latest analysis finds that AI is influencing which colleges students discover, consider, and remove from their shortlists.

Drawing on its 2026 AI Pulse Survey of more than 11,000 high school students and recent graduates, EAB shows how AI is becoming part of college selection. For enrollment teams, some decisions about an institution may now happen before a student visits its website or contacts admissions. Additional insights include:

🔶 AI use is widespread among respondents. Eighty-six percent have used AI tools, and 54% use them at least a few times a week.

🔶 Half use AI to gather information about colleges. Among those using it for college search, 60% say it made the process easier, suggesting that AI can shape how students navigate a complex admissions landscape.

🔶 AI can help institutions attract attention. Fifty-six percent report becoming more interested in a school, while 31% discovered schools they had not previously known about through their AI-assisted research.

🔶 The same tools can narrow the field. Twenty-four percent say AI-provided information made them less interested in a school, and 23% removed institutions from consideration. These are students’ reported decisions, rather than measured changes in applications or enrollment.

A college can lose a place on a student’s shortlist without knowing it was ever there. That makes the accuracy and clarity of its public information a recruitment priority. Enrollment teams should test the questions prospective students ask AI about cost, programs, admissions requirements, and career outcomes, then compare the answers with current institutional information. Where answers are incomplete or misleading, the response should include clearer website content and consistent facts across channels. Current students and admissions staff also need accessible ways to answer questions that an automated summary cannot resolve. The task is to understand the picture students encounter, make it more reliable, and give them a reason to continue the conversation with the institution.

Just the Facts: Ithaka S+R’s study of emergency grants at CUNY links financial support with stronger short-term persiste...
10/20/2026

Just the Facts: Ithaka S+R’s study of emergency grants at CUNY links financial support with stronger short-term persistence, but finds no graduation gains overall.

The evaluation of the Petrie Foundation’s Student Emergency Grant Fund analyzed records for 9,747 students from fall 2021 through summer 2025. Additional insights include:

🔶 Associate degree-seeking grant recipients were three percentage points more likely to persist at CUNY to the next term and five points more likely to persist one year later than non-recipients in the analysis. For bachelor’s students, both differences were three points.

🔶 First-year students showed strong results. Among associate degree-seeking first-year students, recipients had a nine percentage-point advantage in one-year persistence. Yet first-year students represented a disproportionately small share of applicants, especially in bachelor’s programs.

🔶 Average awards were $975 for associate degree-seeking students and $1,024 for bachelor’s students. Among recipients, larger grants were not significantly associated with better persistence outcomes.

🔶 The study found no statistically significant graduation gains overall within one or two years, or persistence gains at two years. Incomplete records and differences between recipients and non-recipients limit the conclusions; the findings do not establish causation.

An emergency grant can address the bill that threatens a student’s enrollment without resolving the pressures behind it. Colleges should examine how students learn about aid, how quickly funds reach them, and what happens after the crisis passes. The first-year findings make early outreach especially relevant: waiting for students to discover a fund may miss those who could benefit most. Connecting aid with advising, benefits navigation, and help managing recurring expenses gives institutions a way to respond to the wider problem. Evaluation should track who receives support, who remains enrolled, and whether that progress leads to a credential, while allowing enough time for students early in their programs to finish.

Just the Facts: Higher Ed Dive’s reporting on fall 2026 enrollment shows major public universities losing international ...
10/16/2026

Just the Facts: Higher Ed Dive’s reporting on fall 2026 enrollment shows major public universities losing international students, even where total enrollment is growing.

The institutional figures reveal how changes in the international pipeline can affect campuses differently. Some universities face overall enrollment losses; others are enrolling more students while seeing their international populations shrink. Additional insights include:

🔶 The University of Colorado system enrolled 926 fewer students, a 1.4% decline from fall 2025. International students accounted for 582 of those losses, representing most of the system’s overall decrease.

🔶 Ohio State’s total enrollment grew 1.4% to more than 68,000, while international enrollment fell 12.7% to 5,234. Its Chinese student population declined 20.7% to 2,558.

🔶 Indiana University’s international enrollment dropped 15.6% to 4,763. These figures describe individual institutions and systems, rather than a national enrollment estimate.

🔶 Preliminary figures show similar pressure elsewhere. The University of North Texas lost more than 1,300 international students, while total enrollment fell 3.6%. Across the Universities of Wisconsin, international students accounted for 1,100 of the 1,732-student overall decline.

A larger incoming class does not automatically offset a smaller international population. The financial effect depends on which programs lose students, what those students pay, and whether replacement enrollment produces comparable revenue. Leadership teams should examine exposure by country, degree level, and academic program, then connect those scenarios to budgets and staffing decisions. Recruitment plans also need to account for the gap between admitting a student and their ability to arrive on campus. Clear communication, timely support, and realistic enrollment assumptions matter when uncertainty interrupts that journey. Planning around total headcount alone can leave institutions unprepared for a change in the composition of the class and the resources available to serve it.

Just the Facts: College Board’s 2026 SAT results show improving scores alongside a changing testing population.Nearly tw...
10/15/2026

Just the Facts: College Board’s 2026 SAT results show improving scores alongside a changing testing population.

Nearly two million students in the high school class of 2026 took the SAT. Average scores rose for a second consecutive year, but fewer than half met both college and career readiness benchmarks. For colleges, the findings connect the applicant pipeline with student support needs. Additional insights include:

🔶 More than 1.95 million students took the SAT, down 2.5% from the class of 2025. Yet participation increased in 42 states and the District of Columbia, while international participation rose 13.5%. The national decline masks considerable geographic variation.

🔶 School-day testing accounted for 65% of SAT takers, with more than 10,000 schools offering the program. Testing during the school day, often at no cost to students, remains a major route to participation.

🔶 The average total score reached 1045, up 16 points from 2025. Reading and Writing rose seven points to 528, returning to pre-pandemic levels. Math increased nine points to 517, still below the 2020 cohort’s average of 523.

🔶 Forty-two percent met both readiness benchmarks, compared with 45% in 2019. These benchmarks indicate the likelihood of success in selected first-semester college courses. The results describe SAT takers, rather than all high school graduates.

These findings deserve attention beyond the admissions office. Colleges can use them to examine how incoming students move into credit-bearing coursework and where early support can address gaps in math preparation during the first year. Enrollment teams should also consider how school-day testing and state participation patterns shape the students represented in their applicant pools. A test score can add context to an application, but it needs to sit alongside coursework, grades, and the opportunities available to that student. Clear testing policies and well-timed support can help institutions connect the information they collect before admission with the experience students encounter once they arrive.

Just the Facts: WGU’s Workforce Decoded: Mid-Level Talent Takes Center Stage in the AI Revolution report examines how AI...
10/13/2026

Just the Facts: WGU’s Workforce Decoded: Mid-Level Talent Takes Center Stage in the AI Revolution report examines how AI is changing who employers want to hire.

Based on a fall 2025 survey of 3,147 U.S. hiring professionals, it shows growing demand for experienced workers alongside pressure on entry-level opportunities. For colleges, the question is how graduates can demonstrate experience before securing their first role. Additional insights include:

🔶 More than 40% identify mid-level workers, with five to ten years of experience, as their most in-demand hiring group. Junior-level workers follow at 23%, highlighting the preference for an established track record.

🔶 More than one-third report reducing entry-level hiring because of AI. In information and technology and finance and professional services, 56% report reductions. This measures employers reporting a change, rather than the share of jobs eliminated.

🔶 Seventy-six percent say AI has changed the types of candidates they seek. Twenty-five percent prioritize comfort using AI tools, while 21% are hiring more candidates with AI-specific skills or certifications.

🔶 Forty-six percent plan to increase their focus on skills over degrees, and 43% expect to emphasize work experience, internships, and apprenticeships. Critical thinking and problem solving lead the skills considered important for job success, cited by 60%.

Colleges can make experience a more part of earning a degree. That means examining who can access paid internships, where employer projects fit into coursework, and how students build evidence of their judgment and skills. Career preparation should begin early enough for students to apply what they learn, receive feedback, and explain their contribution to an employer. Partnerships also need to create entry points for graduates, especially when employers want experience but offer fewer opportunities to acquire it. Academic programs and career services should work together to ensure those opportunities reach students who cannot afford unpaid work or draw on professional networks.

Just the Facts: ICIMS’s September 2026 Workforce Report examines how people are developing AI skills as employers’ expec...
10/09/2026

Just the Facts: ICIMS’s September 2026 Workforce Report examines how people are developing AI skills as employers’ expectations change.

Alongside hiring and job-posting data, the report draws on an August survey of 1,000 U.S. adults. Its findings raise a question for higher education: where can colleges add value when learners are already teaching themselves? Additional insights include:

🔶 Forty-seven percent of respondents worked on their AI skills in the previous six months, up from 41% a year earlier. Another 21% had not started but planned to, while 32% had neither started nor planned to.

🔶 Self-directed learning is outpacing employer training. Thirty percent taught themselves AI skills, up from 22% in 2025, while 17% received employer-provided training, down from 19%. Among employed respondents, the figures were 34% and 24%, respectively.

🔶 Confidence has increased. Sixty percent feel ready to adapt to AI at work, compared with 54% last year. The share feeling unprepared fell from 20% to 14%.

🔶 Learning needs differ. Among working respondents, 61% reported having or building skills with general-purpose AI tools, compared with 30% for AI-assisted data analysis and 17% for AI ethics or governance. Twenty-seven percent reported none of the AI skills listed.

For a college considering an AI certificate or continuing education offering, the starting point is what learners can already do. Someone who uses AI regularly may need help applying it to a particular occupation, evaluating its output, or demonstrating their skills to an employer. Someone with no experience needs an accessible place to begin. Short courses, practical assessments, and employer-designed projects could serve these different needs, provided institutions explain what participants will be able to do on completion. Colleges also need to consider how working adults will fit that learning into their schedules and budgets. The strongest case for enrolling will come from useful instruction, feedback, and credible evidence of progress that independent practice alone may not provide.

Just the Facts: QS’s Back to School Summit 2026 Insights Pack examines how international student demand is changing and ...
10/08/2026

Just the Facts: QS’s Back to School Summit 2026 Insights Pack examines how international student demand is changing and what that could mean for U.S. universities.

Its student mobility projections and survey findings point to a recruitment landscape where established source markets face pressure, emerging markets gain importance, and students want clearer evidence of what studying abroad will offer them. Additional insights include:

🔶 QS projects a 2% decline in international students in the U.S. by 2030. Its comparison of major destinations, which excludes Optional Practical Training, also projects that the UK will overtake the U.S. by 2030.

🔶 The composition of U.S. international enrollment is shifting. China and India accounted for approximately 51% of international students in 2023, compared with 47% in 2026. Countries ranked third through tenth increased their combined share from 18% to 19%.

🔶 Several emerging markets offer growth opportunities. Among the markets highlighted, QS projects more than 40,000 students from Nepal and nearly 35,000 from Vietnam studying in the U.S. by 2030. Ghana’s student numbers in the U.S. grew at a compound annual rate of 22.3% over the past three years.

🔶 Personal connections matter to prospective international students considering the U.S. Fifty-eight percent find it useful to connect with current international students, while 50% value information on work placements and industry links. Forty-five percent identify visa guidance as useful.

Adding countries to a recruitment plan is only the beginning. A university entering a new market needs to understand which programs students want, what they can afford, and what support they expect before committing. That means connecting recruitment decisions with scholarship budgets, academic offerings, career services, and current students who can speak about their experience. The opportunity is to build relationships in markets with growth potential while giving prospective students specific reasons to choose the institution and confidence that it can deliver.

Just the Facts: Cengage’s 2026 Graduate Employability Report finds that many graduates see a difficult contradiction in ...
10/06/2026

Just the Facts: Cengage’s 2026 Graduate Employability Report finds that many graduates see a difficult contradiction in the job market: entry-level roles require experience they have not yet had the opportunity to gain.

Drawing on perspectives from graduates, educators, and employers, the report raises questions about how colleges prepare students for their first job. Additional insights include:

🔶 Fifty-three percent of graduates chose not to apply for entry-level jobs in their field because they felt underqualified, up from 48% in 2025. Seventy-seven percent believe employers expect more experience than an entry-level candidate should reasonably have.

🔶 Internships appear to help bridge that gap. Among employed graduates who completed an internship, 81% say it helped them secure their job. Fifty-six percent of graduates want colleges to offer more internships, co-ops, and paid work experiences.

🔶 Degrees remain part of the hiring process, but employers look for more. Sixty-one percent still require an associate or bachelor’s degree for entry-level positions. When identifying their main hiring priority, 41% selected job-specific skills, compared with 16% who selected college degrees.

🔶 Responsibility for preparation remains unsettled. Seventy percent of employers believe students should take primary responsibility for becoming workforce-ready, while only 19% of employers place that responsibility on themselves.

The first job requires experience, but students do not all have the same opportunities to gain it. An unpaid internship may be out of reach for someone already working to cover tuition and living costs. Colleges can examine how paid placements, employer projects, and applied coursework fit into each degree, who participates, and who misses out. Employers also have a part to play by offering meaningful entry-level opportunities and being realistic about what a new graduate can bring. The goal is for students to leave with both a credential and concrete examples of their work that give them the confidence to apply and employers a reason to consider them.

Just the Facts: A new brief from Columbia University’s Community College Research Center examines why graduates from low...
10/02/2026

Just the Facts: A new brief from Columbia University’s Community College Research Center examines why graduates from lower-income backgrounds earn less than their peers after completing similar degrees.

Based on roughly 80,000 bachelor’s degree graduates from one public university system, it identifies the first job transition as an important factor in later earnings gaps. Additional insights include:

🔶 Graduates from lower-income backgrounds earned 12% to 16% less in the first, fifth, and tenth years after graduation. The annual earnings gap reached $14,457 by Year 10, measured in 2023 dollars.

🔶 Academic differences did not fully explain the gap. After accounting for factors including campus, major, GPA, and test scores, an earnings difference of approximately $4,900 remained five years after graduation.

🔶 Nearly one-third of graduates experienced a quarter without recorded earnings in Year 1, and roughly one in five earned below the poverty line. Lower-income graduates were less likely to have connected with their first sustained employer by graduation: 33%, compared with 39% of higher-income peers.

🔶 First-job experiences explained about two-thirds of the remaining Year 5 earnings gap, with starting salary accounting for most of that reduction. Only about one-third of graduates still worked for their first employer five years later, yet that initial job remained closely associated with later earnings.

For colleges, the findings give career preparation a place alongside completion in discussions of economic mobility. Students can leave with comparable academic records and face very different conditions when entering the workforce.

The authors suggest testing support that helps lower-income students begin job searches earlier, broaden networks, and manage financial pressure after graduation.

Leadership teams should examine whether career services reach students early enough and whether support continues after graduation. Tracking employment alone may miss a more consequential question: what kind of first job are graduates able to secure?

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