US colleges scrambled to react to the coronavirus pandemic. Now their very existence is in jeopardy.

In the span of roughly two weeks, the American higher education system has transformed. Its future is increasingly uncertain.

Most classes are now being held online, often for the rest of the semester. Dorms are emptying across the country. Some universities are even postponing or canceling graduation ceremonies scheduled months out. This is all the more surprising given most universities have a reputation for being reticent to change, especially in a short amount of time.

The coronavirus has changed all that. As of Sunday night, the number of U.S. cases had surpassed 30,000 with at least 417 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins University data dashboard.

Colleges have tried to react quickly to enact measures that would help to stop the virus' spread. On America's campuses, professors and students, many of them international, work in close proximity for long periods of time. Dorm rooms are often shared between multiple individuals, making social distancing next to impossible.

All of those changes could threaten colleges' existence. Parents and students are demanding refunds for shortened semesters in the dorm. The value and quality of an elite college education is under scrutiny as universities pivot to makeshift online classes. And it's unclear how students will view colleges once the crisis is over and they're welcomed back on campuses. 

To stay in America, or go home? Coronavirus pandemic brings stress, fear for international students.

Colleges were already in the red

Moody's on Wednesday downgraded its 2020 outlook for higher education from "stable" to "negative." The credit rating agency cited increased costs associated with the sudden shift to online classes and potential loss of revenues tied to student enrollment and tuition money. Plus, Moody's said, colleges are less able to rely on their endowments as a fallback, since markets are plunging.

Money was already tight at schools fighting declining enrollment. “Just over 30% of public universities and nearly 30% of private universities were already running operating deficits,” said Michael Osborn, a vice president who monitors universities at Moody’s.

On Thursday, groups representing American colleges called on the federal government to support universities as Congress considers coronavirus aid. They asked for emergency financial aid to students and universities, access to zero-interest loans for colleges and money to support digital learning.

Amid the unprecedented interruptions, some students and universities already have hosted slimmed-down graduation celebrations of their own. Students at the University of Michigan even took the traditional cap-and-gown photos on a mostly empty campus. And at Earlham College in Indiana, students hosted an impromptu graduation ceremony before they went home for Spring Break. 

Foregoing grades, issuing refunds

For many, the move to online classes has not yet begun. Many colleges have been on their traditional spring break, and some extended it for an extra week. Some had said the move to online instruction would be temporary, but have since canceled the remainder of in-class instruction. Some, like Berea College in Kentucky, canceled the semester outright. The university does not charge tuition, but it did offer a $1,000 refund for students who moved out of campus housing.

A handful of institutions, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Middlebury College in Vermont, and Wellesley College in Massachusetts, say their online courses will be graded more leniently, or not at all.

Already strapped for cash, many colleges are wrestling with whether to offer refunds, both for tuition and room and board costs, to students who view their semester as cut short.

A flurry of packing, then isolation:How America's college students hunkered down for coronavirus

The Nebraska State College System, which includes three colleges in the state, said it would offer a 60% refund to students who have made the choice to move out of the dorms. Residence halls technically will remain open for students who aren’t able to travel home easily as the university system moves to online classes next week.

At the University of California at San Diego, students who move before March 29 will get a full refund on their housing costs for the spring semester. Ohio State University said it would offer an “appropriate" refund for room and dining costs, but didn’t specify an exact amount. 

Several online petitions have popped up on Change.org asking for partial or full tuition refunds at universities.

“The fact that school has transitioned to remote teaching means that we students are not gaining the same level of teaching from the university in addition to the fact that the school does not need as much money to run now that everything is remote,” said one petition pushing for a partial refund at New York University. (That university has said it will prorate room and board costs for students who had to move out.)

No college tours, canceled ACT and SAT

The spread of the virus has also affected many of the traditions around choosing a college. For example, many high schoolers have canceled campus tours, some planned months in advance. 

College admissions managers are worried about the effect on their incoming classes this fall. Hoping accepted students can visit later this spring, some colleges have also extended the deadline for paying a deposit to secure a place at the institution. The National Association for College Admissions Counseling, a trade group, has created a searchable database of colleges that have altered their admissions practices. 

The virus is also changing the importance of a long-feared element of college admissions: the ACT and SAT tests. The College Board canceled a make-up test date set for later this month and a May test date. The ACT pushed back an April test to June.

The cancellations could hasten universities' movement away from the tests. Critics of the standardized exams say they unfairly benefit wealthier students with the time and resources to prepare for them, and a few colleges have stopped requiring them for admission. At least two universities, Case Western Reserve University in Ohio and Mansfield University in Pennsylvania, joined that group amid the coronavirus outbreak. Mansfield said the new policy applied to those applying for fall 2020 classes, and Case Western said its policy would apply to the class starting in fall 2021. 

As uncertainty built for students, President Donald Trump announced last week the government would waive interest on federal student loans. But the Education Department has yet to say how the plan would work. 

Third-party contractors who collect loan payments haven't provided clarity either. FedLoan Servicing's website said it was working with the federal government to “obtain further guidance. We will provide more information as it becomes available.” Loan servicer Great Lakes simply said on its website to check back for more information. 

Democrats want more help for borrowers amid the building economic crisis, pushing for debt forgiveness to help borrowers who are struggling to make their student loan payments. A Senate plan introduced Thursday gives power to the Department of Education to cover borrowers’ monthly payments for the duration of the national emergency declaration.  Borrowers would also be given a three-month grace period after the emergency ended.

Republicans are also suggesting student loan relief, although in a different form. In a bill introduced by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Thursday, loan payments would be paused for three months and interest wouldn't accrue. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos would have the authority to extend the suspension of payments for an additional three months. 

Education coverage at USA TODAY is made possible in part by a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The Gates Foundation does not provide editorial input.