Career and private schools provide educational opportunities to a growing number of students, often serving diverse populations, including students of color and nontraditional students. In recent years, this higher education sector has been under additional scrutiny by accreditation agencies and the U.S. government. But what do the students enrolled at these colleges think of their experience? What are the priorities on a national level for career school students, and where are the schools meeting or failing to meet these expectations?

I have been involved in enrollment management for more than 40 years, both as an enrollment manager on campus and as a consultant for Noel-Levitz. During that time, I have seen changes in higher education that are nothing short of revolutionary. Shifts in access to higher education, the gender and ethnic composition of classes, the number of students attending college, and technological innovations are just some of the sweeping changes that have made higher education an increasing force in the social, economic, political, and cultural life of our country.