Annual Report from YouScience Reveals 72% of Students Aren't Ready for Life After High School and Sharp College Enrollment Drop
As four-year college enrollment plummets to 35%, students are rethinking their futures, but most say they're unprepared for what comes next
AMERICAN FORK, Utah, May 20, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- YouScience®, the leading education technology company transforming college and career readiness through its award-winning platform Brightpath, today released its third annual Post-Graduation Readiness Report, revealing a growing disconnect between students' education and their preparedness for real-world success.
Drawing from a national online survey of over 500 high school graduates from the Classes of 2021 through 2024, and trends across six graduating classes dating back to 2019, the report uncovers a deepening crisis: students are navigating a rapidly changing world with outdated tools and minimal guidance. The findings demand urgent action to redesign how we prepare young people for life after high school.
Among the report's most critical findings:
'This year's data makes one thing clear: today's students are open to new paths, but they lack the tools and guidance to make confident, informed decisions,' said Edson Barton, CEO of YouScience. 'We must rethink what it truly means to prepare students, not just academically, but practically, for a world that values skills, purpose, and adaptability.'
The data also highlights significant gender disparities. Males are far more likely than females to graduate high school with no plan at all (14% vs. 8%), while females remain more likely to follow the traditional four-year college route (68% vs. 46%).
Too many classrooms still lack career-connected learning opportunities that help students see how their education applies in the real world. In fact, 50% of respondents said schools could have offered more work-based learning opportunities and 41% said schools should have helped them better understand their aptitudes. Far too often, students are relying on shallow, interest-only tools that miss the mark and fail to uncover the deeper aptitudes that shape potential and purpose. Without that level of insight, students are left guessing instead of planning.
With patchwork solutions and vague career advice failing students, YouScience calls on education, business, and policy leaders to take immediate steps to close the readiness gap:
'Students don't need more generic advice, they need meaningful career exposure, real data about their strengths, and practical experiences that connect learning to life,' Barton added. 'This report gives us a roadmap. It's up to all of us to act.'
To read the full 2025Post-Graduation Readiness Report or see how YouScience Brightpath equips schools to drive real student outcomes, visit youscience.com.
About the report
The 2025 Post-Graduation Readiness Report is YouScience's third annual study on how high school graduates are navigating life after graduation. Based on a 2025 online survey of over 500 students from the classes of 2021–2024, and analyzing trends from 2019 to 2024, the report reveals an urgent need to rethink how we prepare students for life beyond high school. It offers insights into graduates' current pathways, sense of preparedness, and the decisions shaping their futures.
About YouScience
YouScience® is the leading education technology company dedicated to empowering individuals with the data and credentials needed to succeed in school, career, and life. Its award-winning platform, Brightpath, is the only College & Career Readiness solution built for both compliance and impact—powered by scientifically backed aptitude discovery, industry-recognized certifications, and meaningful career connections. By leveraging cutting-edge research, AI, and industry collaboration, YouScience helps individuals uncover their unique talents, validate their skills, and connect with in-demand educational and career pathways. YouScience has served more than 13,400 educational institutions and millions of users nationwide, making it the preferred choice for individuals, parents, educators, and counselors to achieve real outcomes through education and career pathways.
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Warning: This post contains mentions of abuse and death. Please proceed with caution. It can be a really tough thing to realize that a relationship you've put all your time, effort, and heart into is, in fact, not working out the way you hoped it would. It can be an even harder thing to get yourself out of it. Sometimes, though, there's one specific, singular moment where you sit there and think, "Yeah, it's time." I asked women of the BuzzFeed Community to share the "last straw" moments that made them break up with their partners for good. Truly, I am so, so proud of these women for doing what they had to and leaving these a-holes in the past. Here are 20 stories they shared: 1."I was taking pre-reqs for nursing school, working full-time and doing my classes at night. One day I dropped my 3-year-old and 6-month-old off with their dad and headed to class. I came home five hours later — about 10 p.m. — and could hear my infant screaming bloody murder as I pulled into the driveway. 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I realized then all of the lies, neglect, and verbal abuse from him was how the rest of the marriage was going to be, so I left him." —Anonymous finally, "My ex and I were different in many ways, but I'd always appreciated the differences, or so I thought. We bought a house together within walking distance to a vibrant town with lots to do — his desire. Mine was to be just slightly out of town on a big lot with lots of animals and gardens and nature. I sold such a house to combine incomes to get the house in town that he wanted. But we compromised with our long-term plans. We would buy this house in town and take a chunk of money to buy land just outside so we could have a place to have fun on the weekends. Think bon fires and beer brewing and our dogs running around and camping or hanging out in a tiny home. When we both retired in about 12–15 years, we could split our time between the two places to ensure we both got what we needed and wanted." "We had been having issues in the relationship for a few years, but the final straw last summer was me bringing up buying the land again after two years of nothing moving forward. He finally said, 'When you start going out to the land with (our kid), I am staying behind.' It doesn't sound dramatic, but it was to me. It was him finally admitting he had gotten all that he wanted — the house and lifestyle and far fewer responsibilities — and my dreams and needs didn't matter anymore, even though living in town on a tiny lot with tons of people on top of us, the noise, and constant foot traffic in front of our house really stressed me out. It just made me realize that he didn't give a damn about what I needed or wanted. I broke up with him that day. It has been really hard on the kid and I, but my child said I did the right thing. You have to be in it as partners and make time and space for both sides to be happy." —Anonymous Women of the BuzzFeed Community — do you have a "last straw" relationship story? If you feel comfortable doing so, you can share your own in the comments below or via this anonymous form. You can find more of these stories here. Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity. If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 (HOPE), which routes the caller to their nearest sexual assault service provider. You can also search for your local center here. If you or someone you know is in immediate danger as a result of domestic violence, call 911. For anonymous, confidential help, you can call the 24/7 National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE) or chat with an advocate via the website.
