Generate Leads that Enroll. Try Risk Free for 90 Days
See how it works
✨ Explore this page with AI

2026 Enrollment Insights Report

How Student Behaviour
Is Shifting in 2026

We analyzed over 800,000 students across 110+ schools over 24 months (May 2024 – April 2026). Here is what the data says has shifted, what has stayed constant, and what it means for your admissions strategy.

800k+ valid career-quiz submissions analyzed
110+ schools
24 months of continuous data

The Two-Point Answer

Biggest Shift. Biggest Constant.

Two years of data, close to a million student interactions. Two findings rise above everything else.

The Shift
+30%

relative increase in students who say they want a new career but are not certain which one, over just two years.

Students are arriving less certain about their career.

The share who tell us "I want a new career but I'm not certain which one" has climbed from roughly 1 in 6 to 1 in 5. That is a 30% jump in two years.

How schools adapt

"The schools pulling ahead are not opening with 'here's our program.' They open with help, career exploration, a quick assessment, an advisor who helps the student name the destination first. Sell the path, not the product."

Shane Sparks, Founder and CEO, Enrollment Resources

The Constant
~70%

of open-text "what's holding you back" responses point to money. Every single month, for 24 months straight.

The number-one barrier is money, and it never moves.

When students describe what is stopping them in their own words, roughly seven in ten point to finances. The next closest barrier, family responsibilities, sits at around 10%. This gap has not changed at all across the entire two-year window.

How schools adapt

"If money is the number-one hesitation seven times out of ten, it cannot be the thing you reveal last. Put real affordability, aid, payment options, ROI, at the front of the conversation."

Shane Sparks, Founder and CEO, Enrollment Resources

Students arrive less certain and very cost-anxious. They are not shopping harder. They are looking for a guide who will help them choose and show them it is affordable.

Shane Sparks, Founder and CEO, Enrollment Resources

By the Numbers

The Data Behind the Findings

Two years of month-over-month quiz submissions, classified and aggregated across 110+ schools.

Career Uncertainty: 2-Year Shift

Mid-2024

16.4%

+30% relative

Early 2026

21.8%

Share of students selecting "I want a new career but I'm not certain which one" on the career motivation question.

Not certain which career, 2024 16.4%
Not certain which career, 2026 21.8%

Top Barriers: "What's Holding You Back?"

AI-classified open-text responses. Distribution flat across all 24 months.

Financial concerns ~70%
Family responsibilities ~10%
Transportation ~9%
No high school diploma ~7%

Signal Check

What We Expected to Move. But Didn't.

Not every hypothesis proved out. These metrics stayed flat across the full two-year window, which is itself a signal worth noting.

Comparison shopping

~15–16%

Students who report inquiring at other schools. Flat across all 24 months.

Research stage

Flat

How far along students' research is has not meaningfully shifted.

Barriers

~30%

Family responsibilities as a barrier, steady, and well below financial concerns.

Every decision backed by data.
Every lead tracked to a result.

At Enrollment Resources, this is how we work. Every paid search keyword, key business decision about programs and campuses, and website optimization is backed by enrollment data, which your team has direct access to right down to the individual lead. We conversion-optimize your site, drive more leads into your CRM, and free your admissions team to do what they do best: enroll the next generation of students.

$1.6B+estimated revenue generated
61%average boost in leads
500+schools served
Start Risk-Free Today 120-day risk-free guarantee