Many Colleges Report Dip in Applications.

The article reports that many colleges and universities in the United States received fewer applications from prospective freshmen by the middle of February 1990 than they had received during the same period in the previous year. Many colleges reported declines of five to 10 percent in applications. A number of theories to explain the change have been forwarded by admission officials. These include explanations based on the decline in the number of high-school graduates, the application of students to fewer institutions due to the shorter application period, and the increasing number of graduates who get jobs after high school.