Is the four-year college degree losing its grip on the American Dream?

Just as American colleges reach the demographic cliff in 2026, higher education in the U.S. is facing mounting pressure from all sides. President Donald Trump has targeted several highly-selective, wealthy universities, slashing federal research funding and questioning their tax-exempt status – painting them as overpriced and out-of-touch bastions of liberalism. But skepticism about college isn’t just coming from the right. On the campaign trail, Democratic nominee Kamala Harris called out the country’s narrow focus on four-year degrees, urging more support for apprenticeships and technical programs.

And the public seems to agree. A growing number of Americans – nearly a third – now say they have little or no confidence in college. That’s up 10 percent from a decade ago. Employers and states desperate for talent are dropping degree requirements for certain entry-level positions.

So where does that leave students and families? And how are colleges, especially those struggling to fill seats, adapting?

In this episode of College Uncovered, co-hosts Kirk Carapezza and Jon Marcus dig into the rise of alternative pathways. They explain why there aren’t more apprenticeship and internship opportunities and explore what happens when the college degree is no longer the default. Whether you’re a student, parent, or just interested in the future of higher education, this episode helps explain what comes next.

Here’s a milestone you might not have heard about: It’s projected that this year, for the first time, more college students will take all of their courses online than will take all of their courses in person.

Online higher education has come a long way since its predecessor, the correspondence school. The universal shift to remote learning during the pandemic only accelerated that momentum. It has also allowed more comprehensive research into whether online teaching works as well as the in-person kind.

But even as more students go online to learn, there are many caveats about this fast-growing innovation. We talk to the experts about who should take online courses, where they should take them and in what subjects. We also lay out questions to ask of online providers, such as what kinds of real-world supports — faculty office hours, tutors — are available.

Finally we solve a mystery that frustrates countless consumers: how in the world it’s possible that most online courses cost as much as, or more than, the brick-and-mortar kind. After all, technology has lowered prices in almost every industry. Come with us as we expose the reason higher education can find a way to charge more for yet another product that by all rights should cost less.

The single fastest-growing group of students in college? This may come as a surprise — they’re still in high school.

So-called “dual enrollment” — also known as “early college” and “concurrent enrollment” — seems a win-win.

Institutions get students, at a time when demographic shifts are making that more difficult; that’s especially true at community colleges, whose enrollment has declined the most.

Meanwhile, high school students rack up credits, potentially saving time and money. Some finish their associate degrees at the same time that they get their diplomas. And studies show that they’re more likely to go on to and graduate from college than their classmates who don’t.

The Department of Education didn’t even track how many students were taking dual-enrollment courses until last year. It turned out that two and a half million of them are. Studies show they’re more likely to go to and graduate from college than their classmates who don’t.

High school students now make up a fifth of community college enrollment. At 37 community colleges nationwide, more than half of students are still in high school.

But like much in higher education, there are traps and pitfalls. Not all of those credits transfer, for example.

In this episode, we provide a road map to navigating dual enrollment.