FEATURED
Fifty of the programs had zero enrollment
Indiana public universities will cut or merge nearly 600 degrees following a statewide review.
The state’s Commission for Higher Education released the results of its review on April 1. Under state law, degree programs must meet certain enrollment benchmarks over a three-year program or they face elimination. Universities can petition for exceptions, and about half of the 1,000 degrees that were flagged for review were allowed to continue.
Chalkbeat reported that the cuts affect relatively few students. “In total, the 1,056 programs officials reviewed enroll only around 4% of Indiana’s college students,” the news outlet reported. “The nearly 600 programs targeted for suspension or elimination enroll just 0.6% of all students in Indiana.”
The decision follows an annual review as required by a 2025 law. Last year universities announced they would cut 75 different degree programs, including 68 with zero enrollment, The College Fix previously reported. Officials suspended or consolidated another 300 degrees under the law.
A review this year identified further programs to merge or cut.
“Out of those over 1,000 under-threshold degree programs, approximately 470 degree programs will continue with no impact to current students,” the commission stated in a news release.
Among these excepted were new degrees that are working to build recruitment, such as media and cybersecurity degrees.
Some universities will merge programs into similarly existing degrees.
For example, Ball State University is consolidating undergraduate degrees in mathematics education into a math major.
Purdue University-Fort Wayne is consolidating its undergraduate degrees in economics, anthropology, political science, and sociology into one bachelor’s program in social sciences.
Indiana’s Secretary of Education Katie Jenner explained the value of the review and taking action to cut programs.
“Students and their families invest significant time, money, and trust into postsecondary education, and they deserve confidence that programs are viable, aligned with student interests and workforce needs, and positioned to deliver real outcomes,” Jenner stated in a news release.
“By right-sizing degree pathways across the state, we can continue to strengthen higher education in Indiana through increased transparency and improved alignment with student interests and real career opportunities,” Secretary Jenner stated.
Others were reportedly critical of the changes.
“The Indiana University faculty representative for the board, Edward Castronova said Bloomington campus faculty he spoke to about these actions were split in their support, with some saying that they believe this move is about turning the university into a ‘business,’” WFYI reported.
The media professor had a different take than his more critical peers.
“Low enrollment is a sign that something about the teaching is not working,” he said.
Purdue University’s provost also supports the cuts, WFYI reported.
“Although accountability can sometimes cause discomfort, when employed appropriately, there is no better tool to drive good outcomes,” Patrick Wolfe wrote in a letter of support.
Few students affected, thousands of degrees still exist
WFYI analyzed the data and found the following degree options will exist after the reductions are made:
- 292 programs in Arts and Humanities
- 218 programs in Business and Communication
- 173 programs in Education
- 291 programs in Health
- 198 programs in Social and Behavioral Sciences and Human Services
- 471 programs in STEM
- 104 programs in Trades
Indiana has made several changes over the years with the goal of refocusing higher education.
Recently, Governor Braun signed legislation directing a review of “low-earning” degrees. This builds on the current law which requires merging or cutting programs with low-enrollment.
The law adopts the federal “Do No Harm” test that Congress passed last July as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, according to Inside Higher Ed.
“The test, which hasn’t yet taken effect, will generally require programs to show their graduates earn more on average than high school diploma earners (just over $35,000 in Indiana),” as a condition of students receiving student loans Inside Higher Ed reported.
“Graduate and professional program earnings would further have to exceed bachelor’s degree earnings,” the outlet reported.
Other states and universities have taken similar actions to reduce excessive degree offerings.
Oklahoma higher ed officials recently identified 16 programs that may be cut in the near future.
In total, the state regents said “41 programs [should] be deleted and 21 programs [should] be suspended” across all universities.
Other cuts are being considered at Ohio University and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, The Fix reported.
