Distress Soars at Small US Colleges as Enrollment Declines

A growing number of small US colleges are under pressure, according to a Bloomberg analysis of the latest federal data that shows more higher education institutions facing enrollment declines and other strains.

About 200 schools met at least three of the five metrics that Bloomberg used to identify rising pressure on non-profit higher-education institutions with less than 5,000 students, according to a review of the most-up-to-date government data from the US Department of Education. Those factors include high acceptance rates, falling enrollment and repeated years of operating losses.

That’s up from Bloomberg’s tally last year and the most facing pressure ...