2025 U.S. Industry Statistics & Market Forecast - Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools

Published: September 2025

Industry Insights

Major trends affect the Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools industry include:

1. Increased emphasis on online learning and technology integration
2. Growing demand for lifelong learning and continuous education
3. Shift towards interdisciplinary and collaborative educational models
4. Rise in international students seeking education opportunities
5. Expansion of vocational and career-specific programs responsive to labor market demands
6. Pressure to lower tuition costs and increase financial aid
7. Heightened focus on student wellness and mental health services
8. Intensification of research collaborations and partnerships with industry
9. Growth in importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives
10. Increased scrutiny and regulatory pressures from government bodies
11. Adoption of sustainable practices and green campus initiatives
12. Challenges in maintaining enrollment levels due to demographic shifts
13. Rise in competition from alternative education providers and corporate training programs

U.S. Geographic Distribution: Revenue Statistics by State

Market Size by State ($ millions) indicates how the industry's competition is distributed throughout the country. State-level information can identify areas with higher and lower industry market share than average.

Income Statement (Average Financial Metrics)

Financial metrics provide a snapshot view of a benchmark "average" company. Key business metrics show revenue and operating costs. The data collected covers both public and private companies.

	Industry Average	Percent of Sales (Industry Benchmark)
Total Revenue	Order at top of page
Operating Revenue
Cost of Goods Sold
Gross Profit
Operating Expenses
Pension, profit sharing plans, stock, annuity
Repairs
Rent paid on business property
Charitable Contributions
Depletion
Domestic production activities deduction
Advertising
Compensation of officers
Salaries and wages
Employee benefit programs
Taxes and Licenses
Bad Debts
Depreciation
Amortization
Other Operating Expenses
Total Operating Expenses
Operating Income
Non-Operating Income
EBIT (Earnings Before Interest and Taxes)
Interest Expense
Earnings Before Taxes
Income Tax
Net Profit Net Income

Source: AnythingResearch Analysis of U.S. federal statistics

Compensation & Salary Surveys for Employees

Compensation statistics provides an accurate assessment of industry-specific jobs and national salary averages. This information can be used to identify which positions are most common, and high, low, and average annual wages.

Title	Percent of Workforce	Bottom Quartile	Average (Median) Salary	Upper Quartile
Management Occupations	9%	Order at top of page
Chief Executives	0%
General and Operations Managers	0%
Other Management Occupations	6%
Business and Financial Operations Occupations	6%
Educational Instruction and Library Occupations	42%
Postsecondary Teachers	33%
Health Teachers, Postsecondary	7%
Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary	6%
Arts, Communications, History, and Humanities Teachers, Postsecondary	6%
Miscellaneous Postsecondary Teachers	6%
Postsecondary Teachers, All Other	5%
Other Educational Instruction and Library Occupations	6%
Office and Administrative Support Occupations	14%

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools Competitor Landscape & Key Companies [PREMIUM]

The most influential companies in the Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools industry and adjacent industries either have large market share or are developing new business models and methods that could disrupt the status quo. We look at leading and emerging companies in the Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools industry and adjacent sectors:

Market Leaders: Direct Competitors Companies with the largest market share, focused in this industry	Market leaders: Diversified Competitors Largest companies that have diversified operations in this and other industries
Innovators: Direct Competitors Innovative, Emerging, and Disruptive Companies that may influence the future direction of the industry.	Innovators: Diversified Competitors Innovators and Disruptors in adjacent industries that may also affect the Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools industry.

Latest Industry News

• Trump’s attack on Harvard underscores existential risk of weaponizing college accreditation - Accreditation, once an esoteric, peer-driven mechanism for ensuring institutional integrity, has become another proxy battlefield in the nation’s higher education wars. (07/10/2025)
• Trump’s law reshapes federal loans and Pell Grants, impacting California students - The law sunsets a loan program for graduate students and makes short-term workforce training eligible for Pell Grants. (07/10/2025)
• University of Phoenix College of General Studies Leadership Publishes White Paper on Student Retention and Success - University of Phoenix College of General Studies Dean Briana Houlihan, MBA, and Associate Dean Jacquelyn Kelly, Ph.D., have published a new white paper, "How an Undergraduate Health and Wellness Course Improved First Year Student Success and Retention, (07/10/2025)
• Erin Nelson named new associate dean of graduate and professional programs - Nelson will oversee the college’s graduate and professional programs that include the Iowa MBA, Master’s in Business Analytics, Master’s in Finance, and Master’s in Accounting programs. (07/10/2025)
• Erin Nelson named new associate dean of graduate and professional programs in the Tippie College of Business - Nelson will oversee the college’s graduate and professional programs that include the Iowa MBA, Master’s in Business Analytics, Master’s in Finance, and Master’s in Accounting programs. (07/10/2025)
• Villanova University Appoints the Rev. David Cregan, OSA, PhD, as Dean of the College of Professional Studies - Villanova University President the Rev. Peter M. Donohue, OSA, PhD, ’75 CLAS, today announced the appointment of the Rev. David Cregan, OSA, PhD, ’89 CLAS, as Dean of the College of Professional Studies (CPS), (07/09/2025)
• Dr. Charles Mitchell, UW football star and education trailblazer, dies - Dr. Charles Mitchell, a longtime educator who was president of Seattle Central College after starring for the Husky football team, died on June 27 at 85. (07/08/2025)
• What the Republicans’ New Policy Bill Means for Higher Education - Social work majors might struggle to get student loans. University endowments would be more heavily taxed. But students in some training programs would become eligible for Pell Grants. (07/03/2025)
• The Crumbling Boundary Between High School and College - B y all appearances, students in the honors program at the University of Iowa should make a seamless adjustment to their college courses. These students, who applied and were selected by the program in a holistic process, have long been on the academic fast track. Many came in with college credits, often from Advanced Placement. (07/01/2025)
• Why the traditional college major may be holding students back in a rapidly changing job market - Students, parents and legislators increasingly prioritize return on investment and degrees that are more likely to lead to gainful employment. This has boosted enrollment in professional programs while reducing interest in traditional liberal arts and humanities majors, creating a supply-demand imbalance. (06/30/2025)