APOLLO GROUP INC. Phoenix, Arizona Educator Has Different Take On The Economy.(THE NEW AMERICA)

Byline: ADELIA CELLINI LINECKER

You've probably heard the theory before: Post-secondary education companies do well in recessions because laid-off people go back to school to improve their skills.

Well, not so fast.

Apollo Group Inc. doesn't pray for a deep recession to boost enrollment. In fact, analysts say, it benefits from an economy where there aren't too many layoffs and where folks don't feel a pressing need to enhance their skills to land a job.

"Either extreme tends to have a dampening effect," said Natalie Walrond, analyst at Pacific Growth. "When the economy is extremely strong or weak, you start to see an impact on enrollment rates. But when the economy is looking pretty good or softening a little bit, those companies tend to …