While some of these challenges have been ongoing, it is natural to ask what are the most significant drivers in higher education change? It turns out that some things have changed pretty radically in the last 35 years. Probably the most significant is a rise in the cost to attend college that has been twice the rate of inflation (Vedder, 2004, p. 3). A close second in significance is the dramatic shift in financing for higher education from grants to loans over the last 15 years (Losing ground: A national status report on the affordability of American higher education, 2002, p. 7). Taken in total the economic realities and financing trends make it not at all unusual for today’s student to graduate with $15,000 to $25,000 or more of debt (Federal student loan debt: 1993 to 2004, 2005). Over the last 35 years, especially from 1970 to 1995, there has been a dramatic rise in non-traditional students (Vedder, 2004, p. 96-99) - those that need to work or have other serious distractions from the degree goal.

Today, the percentage of students that are traditional is only 27% (Choy, 2002b, p. 1). While the percentage of non-traditional learners is expected to level off (Gerald & Hussar, 2002, p. 31) over the next ten years, there are no signs that we are going back to the traditional past. The biggest challenge and potential opportunity is that data indicates that the non-traditional student is much less likely to complete courses or programs due to other priorities in life. In fact, the graduation rate in six years for the non-traditional student drops to as low as 32% for some non-traditional factors (Student success: Understanding graduation and persistence rates 2003, p. 7).

The future challenge for U.S. higher education can be summarized in one simple phrase, “How can we educate more people?” This means a higher percentage of successful students entering, persisting and completing. This means that our system must make room for more students and must do a better job of providing quality education that fits their life circumstances. The challenge is in helping all students, a majority of whom are more distracted and economically challenged, complete programs that not only help them get jobs but help them move ahead significantly in terms of liberty and economic status. Since the amount of knowledge is said to be doubling every seven years, this is not a trivial task – and may in fact be the most important challenge of our future. And, as a global leader the U.S. has a role in this equation for the entire world.