Tens of Millions of Adults Want to Go to College
Sara Weissman
June 11, 2026
Over a quarter of U.S. adults between the ages of 25 and 64—representing 41.7 million people—intend to enroll in some type of higher education program or training within the next two years, according to a new report from the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) and CollegeAPP, a data analytics service.
The report, released Tuesday, explores which adult learners are eager to enroll in college, why, and what obstacles they face, drawing on a survey of upward of 300,000 people fielded between 2019 and 2025.
The survey found that higher shares of Black (43 percent), Hispanic (40 percent) and female (30 percent) adults were intent on enrolling.
