The average college undergrad leaves school owing $29,400 and more than 42-million Americans have student loan debt. So, is college even worth it anymore? According to 72% of Americans with a college degree, it is.
According to a new survey from USA Today Blueprint of 2-thousand adults, (half who have a college degree and half who don’t):
- More than half (59%) of those with a college degree think their student loan investment was worth the cost, but 29% don’t think it was and 12% aren’t sure.
- A third of respondents wish they’d taken a different approach to college or didn’t go to college at all.
- Nearly half (46%) of those who graduated from college think they could have gotten their current job without earning a degree and 37% feel they’d be in the same job even without a degree.
- Overall, 76% of postgraduates and 59% of undergraduates don’t regret going to college, but 31% do regret not taking a gap year first.
- When looking at specific majors, those with arts and humanities degrees tend to feel college was worth it the most, as 68% of them say their education was worth the student loans.
- Those who studied business and STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and math) are next with 63% each saying their degree was worth it.
- That drops to 54% for those with a health and medicine degree and 52% for those who majored in social sciences.
- Some former students have regrets, with 52% of respondents saying they would’ve chosen a different educational path or not gone to college if given the chance.
Source: USA Today