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The higher education landscape is changing and is in a state of flux. Enrollments are declining, graduate preparation programs are struggling, federal legislation such as Title IX is being challenged, divisions of student affairs are being disassembled, and more. Although the college student population has continued to diversify, institutional performance gaps regarding retention and persistence persist. COVID-19 disrupted higher education in ways not seen in the nearly 400-year history of US higher education, and the public availability of generative AI may rival that disruption. Although there are competencies and certifications for student affairs professionals as well as standards for master's preparation programs, senior student affairs officers lament the fact that graduates of these programs are underprepared for the current state of higher education. With shifting sands of the field, attacks on DEI, and the great resignation of student affairs professionals, how do student affairs preparation programs adjust to lead the transformation of higher education? This issue of New Directions for Student Services explores the future of student affairs in higher education and articulates the innovation needed in professional preparation to lead change in the field and support the success of all students. Christine Wilson opens the issue by outlining the future issues influencing higher education, setting the stage for the following articles. She first discusses past and current issues affecting higher education and student affairs. Moving to the future, she considers issues, including higher education's return on investment, enrollment changes, institutional changes, evolving academic and out-of-classroom experiences, generative artificial intelligence, and the duty to care for students. She concludes her article with the implications of student affairs professional preparation. Terrell Strayhorn examines the changing college student demographics and their impact on all facets of higher education, with a focus on how they will shape the preparation of student affairs professionals. He asserts that in many ways, student affairs continues to operate from a traditional model designed for students who are no longer the majority of those enrolled in our colleges and universities. To meet the needs of our changing demographics, he argues that formal graduate preparation and informal training curriculum must morph into a curriculum that provides continuous training on the needs of our current student population. Professional associations can play a key role in outlining professional pathways into the field. Chris Moody and Amelia Parnell discuss how the American College Personnel Association (ACPA) and the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) can contribute to preparing future practitioners. They focus on roles such as setting standards and competencies; providing communities of practice; guiding curriculum design, assessment, and revision; and supporting research, scholarship, and publishing as ways that professional associations can and should influence professional preparation. Agreed-upon competencies should guide professional preparation and professional development. John Wesley Lowery, Jennifer Wells, and Léna Crain discuss how the ACPA/NASPA Professional Competencies and the CAS Standards Master's Level Higher Education and Student Affairs Professional Preparation Programs inform and guide preparation for future professionals in the field. Lazaro Camacho and Annemarie Vaccaro contend that master's preparation programs are at an inflection point, given declining enrollments and financial constraints limiting valuable graduate assistantships and internships. After providing a history on these programs, they discuss the roles that entry and retention; anti-diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice policies; practical experiences; and well-being and mental health will have on master's programs now and in the future. Jay Dee and Amy Collinsworth argue that doctoral programs are insufficiently preparing higher education leaders for the challenging roles they encounter because guidelines that inform leadership development at this level are not dynamic enough to keep pace with the quickly changing landscape. They advocate for a shift in leadership development in doctoral education to better prepare future leaders for the evolving field. Joseph DeSantos Jones and Dean Kennedy explore credentialing and other alternatives to traditional graduate programs for professional preparation. They begin by discussing the documents, principles, standards, and competencies that guide higher education practice, and then provide a historical analysis of career paths in student affairs, concluding with a discussion of how certification and credentialing can offer additional and alternative pathways for professional preparation. Closing out the issue, Patrick Love and Aaron Bachenheimer project what the future of higher education and student affairs professional preparation should be to address the anticipated and unanticipated issues. Professional preparation does not only happen in graduate programs. It is essential to maintain an ongoing process that enables practitioners and scholars to address current issues in the field. As a result, this issue is intended not only for graduate faculty and program directors but also for supervisors and leaders. To effectively support the diverse students now and in the future, the field must work collaboratively to ensure adequate preparation for those working in student affairs.