Dive Brief:

• Missouri College is drawing headlines and controversy as administrators sent home students early during a school day this week, and then informed them the school would be closing immediately.
• Officials say the closure is a result of financial problems faced by its owning corporation, Weston Educational Inc., which also closed other campuses it owns.
• The for-profit school had operated for more than 50 years, providing healthcare and medical training for students in the region. Many of the unique programs are not offered elsewhere.

Dive Insight:

The recent rash of for-profit closure shows that changing rules in federal administration can, indeed, close a school almost instantly. And for students, that is not a prescription for their tuition investment or career goals. 

For non-profit institutions, there has been a rush to make transfer options available to students displaced by closures, but the reality is that most of those students will not be able to transfer most, or even some of their credits to other institutions and majors which for-profits have strategically built outside of higher education norms. Presidents and provosts who may see opportunities for these students are best served by developing credentialing programs to meet local and regional workforce needs and to reap some PR and revenue objectives by welcoming these students.