I wonder how much of this is down to AI? Maybe not much yet. Concerns about it and employment have only started going mainstream in the 2020s. That suggests there is more decline ahead for people's regard for the worth of college education.
It's striking how much opinions differ according to politics. 39% of Republicans rate college as "Not too important", versus 9% of Democrats who feel the same way. The article wonders if the perceived left-wing bias of colleges is to blame. But if right-wing people desert colleges, won't that just make them more left-wing? The student body certainly will be, and that's where the future staff members come from.
Perceived Importance of College Hits New Low: The percentage of Americans saying college is "very important" has fallen to 35%
I'll caveat: college is important, though not necessarily based on classes. For me, it was the first time I experienced other people from a vast array of cultures, both domestic and abroad. It helped shape me into the person I am today, and it's a much better person than I would've been should I have stayed in my podunk town.
Is that worth the cost? Hell no. That we have to go into decades of debt to earn a piece of paper is stupid. Was it worth me growing as a human being? Absolutely. I never would take that back.
A caveat to my caveat lol: this isn't saying that my experience means it's that way for all, but that it really was formative for me. Others may experience that same thing in trade schools. I just think the immersion was much more in depth for me ๐
Agree. I learned a lot of things in college and most of them were not learned in the classroom. The debt it saddled me with was rough, but it was worth my personal growth.