(File Photo: Source for Photo: More than 80 percent of adults without a degree or credential who have thought about going back to school say they are likely to enroll in a program within the next five years. Credit for Photo: (S Fanti/AdobeStock) – Danielle Smith, Keystone News Service, Caption for Photo: Graduation, education and success with friends in celebration as a graduate group outdoor, throwing mortar caps. Diversity, university and man and woman students celebrating a college diploma. Credit for Photo: (S Fanti/AdobeStock) – Danielle Smith, Keystone News Service

(Reported by Danielle Smith of Keystone News Service)

(Harrisburg, PA) As students graduate across Pennsylvania, a new report shows many adults still hope to earn a college degree – but high costs and limited access often stand in the way. Almost 35 percent of adults in Pennsylvania have a bachelor’s degree or higher. Research by Gallup and Lumina Foundation focuses on nearly 14-thousand U-S adults, ages 18 to 59, who don’t have a degree. Some are in college now, but others are not – and many expressed a willingness to try again. Lumina Foundation’s Courtney Brown says while belief in higher education is strong, most people don’t think getting a degree is within their reach. Brown points out nearly one in three students now enrolled in college have considered stopping out for mental health reasons. That number reached a high of 41 percent in 2022 – and it’s now about 32 percent. According to the survey, financial strain is the biggest reason adults don’t go back to college.