Is College Worth It?

2024-07-17

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  • A new study says that Americans have increasing questions about the value and cost of a college education.
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  • Most of the people taking part in the study felt that higher education in the U.S. is headed in the "wrong direction."
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  • Gallup and the Lumina Foundation carried out the study.
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  • It found that only 36 percent of adults said they had a "great deal" or "quite a lot" of confidence in higher education.
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  • That confidence level has decreased steadily from 57 percent in 2015.
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  • That was the first year in which Gallup measured confidence in higher education.
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  • The decline is seen in all subgroups of people including sex, age, and political ties.
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  • Among Republican Party members in the study, the number of people with high confidence in higher education has dropped 36 percentage points over the last 10 years.
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  • That is far more than for Democratic Party members or independents.
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  • Some of the opinions in the study might show concerns about the high cost of college and how race and other subjects are taught.
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  • Fifty-nine-year-old Randy Hill is a registered Republican in Connecticut and a driver for a car service.
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  • He told the Associated Press, "It's so expensive, and I don't think colleges are teaching people what they need to get a job."
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  • Hill said his nephew plans to do a welding apprenticeship after high school instead of going to college.
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  • The June 2024 study found that 36 percent of adults feel strong confidence in higher education.
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  • That percentage is unchanged from the year before.
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  • But the researchers said they were concerned that fewer Americans were saying that they had "some" confidence, and more were reporting "very little" or "none."
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  • This year's findings show almost as many people have little or no confidence, 32 percent, as those with high confidence.
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  • Experts say that fewer college graduates could worsen labor shortages in fields from health care to information technology.
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  • For those who do not go to college, it often means lower lifetime earnings.
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  • Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce said lifetime earnings for those without a bachelor's degree could be 75 percent less than for those with a degree.
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  • The center also said that during an economic downturn, those without college degrees are more likely to lose their jobs.
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  • Courtney Brown is a vice president at Lumina, an education nonprofit group.
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  • It aims to increase the number of students who seek education beyond high school.
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  • She said, "What's shocking to me is that the people who have low or no confidence is actually increasing."
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  • This year's study added new, detailed questions in an effort to understand why confidence is shrinking.
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  • Almost one-third of people in the study said college is "too expensive."
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  • About 25 percent thought students are not getting the right education or taught what they need to succeed.
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  • The study did not ask about the protests against the war in Gaza this year that divided many college communities.
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  • But people who took part said they had concerns about indoctrination, political bias, and that colleges are too liberal.
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  • Among those who said they lack confidence in college, 41 percent said political activity was a reason.
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  • Sixty-seven percent of adults in the study said colleges are headed in the "wrong direction."
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  • That is more than two times higher than the 31 percent who think that colleges are going in the right direction.
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  • Gallup noted that when people express confidence in higher education, they are thinking of four-year colleges.
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  • But the study found that more people have confidence in two-year community colleges.
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  • Forty-nine percent of adults said they have "a great deal" or "quite a lot" of confidence in two-year programs, compared with 33 percent of Americans who feel that way about four-year colleges.
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  • California college student Kristen Freeman said she understands why.
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  • "It's about saving money. That's why I went to a two-year. It's more bang for your buck," said Freeman who is a 22-year-old sociology major at Diablo Valley Community College.
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  • She plans to go to San Jose State University for the final two years of college.
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  • Freeman said she understands the concerns about indoctrination and whether college prepares students for life and work.
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  • But she feels the only way to change structural problems is from the inside.
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  • "I am learning about the world around me and developing useful skills in critical thinking," Freeman said.
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  • "I think higher education can give students the spark to want to change the system."
  • 43
  • I'm Mario Ritter, Jr.
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  • And I'm Anna Matteo.