Welcome to Mile Markers, a bimonthly newsletter about rural higher education. I’m Nick Fouriezos, an Open Campus national reporter who grew up at the crossroads of suburban Atlanta and the foothills of Appalachia.

Today’s Roadmap

01: Postcards: A GED perception shift.
02: Roadside Attractions: Mapping school choice.

01: Postcards

Earlier this year, the experts at the national nonprofit Education Design Lab noticed something strange.

While poring over the enrollment numbers at Crowder College in rural southwest Missouri, they saw there were a disproportionate number of under-18 students  — and they weren’t in dual-enrollment or early college.

No, these were mostly younger students who had passed one of Missouri’s high school equivalency tests.

The biggest surprise of all? 

A growing portion of them seemed to be high-performing students, pursuing GEDs and similar tests not as a last resort, but as a strategic choice. 

Missouri state data shows that the number of under-18 high school equivalency test takers jumped from about 4,500 in 2023 to 5,208 in 2024 — a 15% increase from the years prior. 

It’s difficult to parse out academic scores of individual HSE test takers, making it unclear what percentage were high-performers in high school. 

However, the Education Design Lab has noticed a similar pattern of more young, non-traditional GED students emerging in rural west Texas. 

And Joan Zibert, the Director of Grants at Crowder College, saw a growing shift while working in Colorado as well.

In fact, Zibert’s own son is following that path.

At 16, after playing football and experiencing some injuries, he started reconsidering finishing high school, following the example set by some of his order friends who had already left early to start trade programs.

He took his high school equivalency exams, scored well enough to earn college scholarships, and is now studying construction management at Crowder. 

He will attend a nontraditional graduation in May, and plans to also get his welding certificates over the summer.

By the time her son is 18, he could be starting his own business — years ahead of the typical timeline.

Why are students turning toward the GED?

Zibert — who was speaking in her personal capacity, as a mother, and as a former school founder and school board president — says the shift she sees is the result of several factors.

"A lot of it has to do with remote learning, with different educational platforms, being available and more accepted. People are looking for different avenues for their children."

Particularly in rural areas, the motivation for early completion is about ambition and entrepreneurship, Zibert says, especially as trade professions have become more popular.

"It's a lot of plumbing, electrical, welding jobs," Zibert says. "By the time they're 18, they want to have their own business. There is a lot of entrepreneurial mindset."

Who makes these educational decisions? 

This information-sharing rarely comes from the schools themselves, Zibert says. 

She feels like high schools sometimes actively discourage alternative paths because of how it might affect their funding, which is often based on enrollment numbers.

While the awareness of alternative paths typically comes from parents or family connections, the choice often falls to the students.

Zibert says she intentionally presented each of her three children with multiple educational options and supported their decisions. 

Her eldest daughter chose a work-study path, splitting time between high school classes and working to start earning early.

Her middle child took the traditional route, partly because she was an athlete, earning a volleyball scholarship to college. 

Meanwhile, her youngest chose the GED path and early entry into college for a trade, a path she was just as happy to support.

Rethinking educational success

The shift in students seeing the GED as an acceptable, and tactical, career choice, points to a generational trend that could have major ramifications for high schools and colleges alike.

It stems in part from the combination of extremely price-conscious Gen Z students and millennial parents like Zibert who may not feel like the traditional education system served them well.

"I don't think stereotypically about education, I think outside the box," Zilbert says. "If I could give every child one class, it would be entrepreneurship and what life skills may look like just to give them the adaptability to change."

This adaptability may be especially valuable as AI and other technologies transform the job market. In a world where career paths can quickly become obsolete, the ability to learn, pivot, and create opportunities is going to become even more essential.

That mindset isn’t just being reflected by parents like Zilbert, but also in the highest corridors of higher education. 

Leading minds like the Carnegie Foundation’s Tim Knowles and Utah Superintendent Sydnee Dickson are also advocating for a shift toward skills-based learning and a de-emphasis of the hourly credit-based system that has dominated American education over the last decade.

The fact that students, teachers, and education policy experts across the political spectrum are coalescing is, to say the least, surprising — and perhaps indicative of how far perspectives have shifted on what education should look like going forward.

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