Community colleges and enrollment
Community college can be a more affordable and less time-consuming way for students to earn a degree. Additionally, attending community college can be an easy way to gain entry to four year institutions. Some students may choose to attend a two year college to save money before transferring to a four year college. For some four year schools, they provide easier enrollment to students who have already studied in a community college.In 2021, about 4.5 million students were enrolled in public 2-year postsecondary institutions across the U.S., a figure which is forecasted to increase to over 5 million enrolled students by 2031. In that same year, the most popular field of study for community college graduates was liberal arts and sciences, general studies, and humanities. About 400,447 associate degrees awarded at community colleges were in this field of study, and it made up one third of all attained degrees.