Higher education ended 2025 with a fresh round of layoffs and a gloomy credit outlook for the sector. Institutions reported roughly 300 job cuts in December, bringing total sector job losses to about 9,000 for the year as colleges grappled with falling enrollments, rising costs and federal policy uncertainty. At the same time, the three major credit-rating agencies—Fitch, Moody’s and S&P Global—issued cautious or deteriorating outlooks for 2026, flagging mounting operating pressures and heightened default risk for weaker institutions.