Not according to two-thirds of Americans in a recent NBC poll. A similar survey was taken in 2013, and then 53% believed college was worth the price. Much has happened in the past 12 years, especially with the rise in college debt, which may have influenced those polled.
If it did, there are good reasons for it. Currently, total student loan debt exceeds $1.81 trillion. The figure reflects approximately 42.3 million students, with an average debt of nearly $40K. Those are tremendous numbers and saddle young graduates with encumbrances, which inevitably stall future financial decisions like marriage and home purchases.
It is hard to deny that the financial implications weigh heavily on the recent poll. However, the public has been shown that what is going on in these institutions of higher learning isn’t exactly copacetic. Colleges and universities have expanded their areas of study, having no commercial value for most students. Some of them are: Visual and Performing Arts; Communications; Gender Studies, Ethnic Studies, and similar fields. Not only do these majors have great difficulty preparing students for employment, but they also lack a liberal education as a foundation. In other words, they fail to teach the student advanced literacy of reading comprehension and logical thinking.
Mirroring the opinion that college is not all it is cracked up to be, corporations are no longer requiring applicants to hold degrees. Pew Research reports that major companies such as Apple, IBM, and Hilton no longer disqualify potential employees solely based on whether they have a degree. The candidate’s evaluation is based on their experience and practical skills.
What also might have an impact is what Charlie Kirk showed when he visited college campuses. As the leader of Turning Point USA, part of his mission was to bring the message of conservatism to many universities and colleges steeped in liberal ideology. Kirk would challenge the students to debate with him, and on many occasions, he would outrightly embarrass them for their limited knowledge of the subject. Charlie Kirk never went to college, and the breadth of his understanding was that of one who earned a PhD. The moral of the story of Kirk is that you do not have to go to a four-year college to be educated.
Another possible reason is the elephant in the room. The prevailing thought and practice in high schools across the nation is to encourage every student to go to college. The truth is, not every student has the intellectual capacity to do so—a disservice to these students, who are not advised to pursue a career in the trades. To become a carpenter or an HVAC technician is frowned upon by the educational elites. Those who go into those fields have no college debt and plenty of employment opportunities. Plumbers and electricians will always be in demand, and their salaries will support a comfortable life.
And there is one more reason to consider. A significant number of parents have sent their children off to college only to find that, when they return, they have sometimes estranged themselves from their family. Tragically, too many of them have lost the faith. No degree can compare with the loss of a spiritual grounding and practice.
In this regard, college is definitely not worth it.