The Price of Ascending America’s Class Ladder
Being upwardly mobile can come at a cost to people’s relationships with the family, friends, and community they grew up with.
The Democrats Aren’t Talking About Education Issues They Can Change
Candidates were given little time at the third presidential debate to discuss their proposals to transform college.
Welding Won’t Make You Rich
Is a lucrative college-free job too good to be true?
The Most Popular Names of This Year’s College Freshmen
A university’s roster of new students is a time capsule of popular baby names from 18 years earlier, with telling variations reflecting the school’s particularities.
The Bleak Truth Behind My ‘Inspiring’ Path From Oakland to Yale
When I decided to attend Yale five years ago, people held me up as an example of a black student who “beat the odds.” I wish they were more curious about why my brother wound up in prison instead.
Betsy DeVos’s Extraordinary Crackdown on Michigan State
The Education Department’s record-high fine against MSU underscores the extent to which the university botched its handling of various sexual-abuse scandals.
Colleges Face Growing International Student-Visa Issues
Amid tightening immigration restrictions, higher-education institutions find themselves swamped with paperwork.
It’s Time for Black Athletes to Leave White Colleges
They attract money and attention to the predominantly white universities that showcase them, while HBCUs struggle. What would happen if they collectively decided to go to black schools?
Why College Became So Expensive
And what that has meant for America’s middle-class families
How Twin XL Beds Took Over College Campuses
The slightly longer mattress is a compromise between schools’ economic needs and students’ physical ones.
Why Dorms Are So Nice Now
Many of today’s students are living in far better-appointed accommodations than now-graying alumni did.
The Fine Line Campus Tour Guides Walk—Backwards
Guides are expected to serve as the face of the university and as an authentic voice for prospective students. Can they truly be both?
Colleges Would Rather Freshmen Not Choose Their Roommates
Though many new students want to choose for themselves, schools prefer to use dorms as a way to introduce young adults to new perspectives.
Republicans Changed Their Mind About Higher Education Really Quickly
A majority of them no longer think campuses are setting the country on the right course. What happened?
Alaska Still Hasn’t Saved Its Universities
The governor agreed to halve his proposed budget cuts. But the school system still stands to lose $70 million.
Secrets and Lies in the School Cafeteria
A tale of missing money, heated lunchroom arguments, and flaxseed pizza crusts
How They (Online Graduate Programs) Get You
Eager to attract students to new online graduate programs, selective universities have adopted surprisingly aggressive telemarketing practices.
Teaching Toni Morrison
My life was never the same after reading Beloved. And I hope my students’ won’t be either.
When ‘Back to School’ Means Back to Mass-Shooting Fears
High-profile massacres have created ambient, worsening anxiety about gun violence on K–12 campuses.
‘Popular’ Kids Aren’t That Special
They do play a role in setting a school’s norms—but kids’ parents and close friends have more sway.