According to a new report from HigherEdJobs, the total number of jobs in higher education increased during the second quarter of 2018 but at a slower rate compared to last year.

According to an analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data by HigherEdJobs, higher education employment increased 0.2 percent, or 7,000 jobs, during the second quarter of 2018. While positive, the increase was less than one-fourth of the growth observed one year earlier when higher education jobs increased 0.8 percent, or about 29,800 jobs, in Q2 2017. A significant portion of the growth in Q2 2018 can be attributed to an increase in the number of jobs at both public and private four-year colleges and universities but not necessarily at community colleges or technical and trade schools where the trends were mixed between public and private institutions.

Meanwhile, the number of postings for open positions in higher education increased 9.1 percent in Q2 2018, which was the highest quarterly growth rate regardless of quarter since Q2 2016.

Digging deeper into the job posting trends, all of the increase in postings for higher education jobs can again be attributed to a rise in postings for full-time positions since there was actually a decrease in the number of postings for part-time positions. This development was first observed in the fourth quarter of 2017 after several years of part-time job postings increasing at a greater rate than postings for full-time jobs. "There could be several explanations for why job postings for part-time higher ed positions are decreasing while postings for full-time positions are increasing. The most likely is that higher education administrators and managers are experiencing more stable enrollment trends, which enable better and more accurate strategic planning regarding immediate as well as longer-term future staffing levels," according to John Ikenberry, president and co-founder of HigherEdJobs.