Dive Brief:
- WalletHub has released its 10 financial predictions for the upcoming year, with dismal outlooks for gross domestic product growth and household credit card debt, but some optimism on unemployment numbers.
- The website projects that the nation's GDP will hover at just above 2%, while unemployment will finish at 5% and total credit card debt will top $1 trillion for the first time in history.
- These predictions have close ties to the success and growth of the higher education industry, and new mandates for colleges to support job training and creation while reducing costs for education access.
Dive Insight:
WalletHub's tracked success rate on financial predictions shows a pretty accurate record of outlook on the nation's spending, debt, and productivity; colleges should pay close attention to these numbers to get a sense of what taxpayers and lawmakers are bracing for in the near future, and how campuses can equip themselves to meet these challenges.
Colleges cannot guarantee a more prepared workforce or a wiser consumer, but they can promote the ways in which they offer more insight and information to the citizenry, and how it works to support those students who earn funding through performance and merit. These will be key elements of promotional objectives for schools in the near future, even with new research showing how college towns bolster local and national economies.