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Is a university degree worth it?

Key Arguments

Pursue a degree for career access

  • Pro: Access to degree required professions
  • Pro: Higher average lifetime earnings
  • Pro: Structured access to recruitment
  • Con: Qualifications do not guarantee employment
  • Con: Some careers require further credentials
  • Con: Several years of forgone earnings

Choose a degree with manageable costs

  • Pro: Lower borrowing reduces repayment burdens
  • Pro: Costs can be compared beforehand
  • Pro: Flexible study can preserve earnings
  • Con: Future earnings remain uncertain
  • Con: Cheaper programs may limit choices
  • Con: Working can extend study time

Prioritize vocational training and apprenticeships

  • Pro: Training targets specific job skills
  • Pro: Some apprenticeships provide paid learning
  • Pro: Programs can require less time
  • Con: Training may be narrowly specialized
  • Con: Degree requirements still exclude applicants
  • Con: Quality and availability vary locally

Build experience before pursuing a degree

  • Pro: Work can clarify career preferences
  • Pro: Employment provides income and experience
  • Pro: Some employers support further study
  • Con: Degree dependent careers start later
  • Con: Later study can complicate budgeting
  • Con: Available jobs may offer limited insight

Pursue university for broader learning

  • Pro: Structured opportunities for academic exploration
  • Pro: Practice in research and analysis
  • Pro: Access to academic communities
  • Con: Similar learning exists outside university
  • Con: Personal benefits can be costly
  • Con: Academic environments do not suit everyone

Community Opinions

Opinion by @diane1

Parent asks whether college is worth it after their son dismisses its value

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My son says that college is so last century. He thinks it isn't even worth it. What do you think?

Opinion by @hannah1

Her degree felt worthwhile without student loans, though her job requires a degree but not her field of study

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Hi, my name is Hannah, and I personally feel like my degree was worth it, but I am very aware of the fact that the only reason that I feel that way is because I don't have student loans. I think if I did, I would feel very differently about this question. Part of the reason for that is because the job that I have now, while having a bachelor's degree was like a minimum requirement to qualify for this job. It's not in either of the areas of study that I got my degree in. So as to whether I'm like using my degree, I guess I'm using the fact that I have a degree, but I'm not really like using the degree that I got, if that makes sense. I'm also really aware of the fact that it would be really hard for me to pay off a student loan on the salary of this job that I have that required me to have a bachelor's degree. So again, I, I do feel like it was worth it because I'm not still paying for it, and so I'm in a really fortunate position where I get to be really grateful for the experience of having gone to college and the independence that came with that, the classes that I got to take, the—and again being able to meet sort of the minimum qualifications of this job that I have that I love. So for me, I, I feel like it was worth it.

Opinion by @curiousMe

College degrees aren't worth the cost as AI changes jobs, and learning doesn't require college

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College degree is not worth the money that it is made of, really. I felt peer-pressured into going to college back in the day. I feel like there is this assumption of a degree that no longer exists. With AI, guys, wake up. We're not gonna be doing the jobs that we were doing. So hearing kids today talk about it's really important to learn, 100% agree with you. That does not mean you need to go to college and spend $80,000 a year on average for a degree in what? I think we have to accept the fact that the world is changing and also the concept of college. So for the kids out there, and speaking as a mom of four, no, I do not think that your time, energy, and definitely money are going to be paid for with a college degree and worth it.

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Is a university degree worth it?

DISCUSSION

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9 human voices · Public · 1 week ago

HomeWatchThinkSpeak

Opinion by @larissaMJR

A theater degree in New York was worthwhile for the connections and paid work, despite its high cost

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Hi guys, my name is Larissa, and on the prompt, do I think my college degree was worth it? Well, I went to school for theater, and I actually do think my degree was worth it. Maybe not worth the full, however many tens of thousands of dollars that I'm paying off right now in student loans, but I went to a performing arts school that was in the middle of New York City, and so the connections that I made were very, very valuable. Versus if I had gone to a theater program that were somewhere out in a different state in the middle of some isolated college town. As a result, I got to do a lot of paid work while I was still in college, and also got to do paid tours just after college because of the connections that I made on my own. It really seems to me like I just took initiative and made connections on my own. I don't know if the college really made those connections for me, but because the college was there, I was able to be there and meet the right people to be able to make the right moves for me moving forward in my career at the time. So again, I don't know if I would have paid tens of thousands of dollars for these particular connections, but I do think the experience was worth it, and the network that I got out of going to college was worth it.

Opinion by @elkanah1

College offered learning and research skills and a lasting network, not practical career tools

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Good morning, my name is Elkanah. I'm filming this short video here at our farm, a great way to start the day. So, to answer the question, I think that the actual degrees did not give me the tools that I needed for my career. However, I did learn how to learn, meaning I think that going to a good college and my bachelor's degree helped me develop the tools that I needed in life to do research. It doesn't matter if it was in a startup or other businesses that I worked with, where you have to dig deep and try to understand complicated situations. So I think I did get those tools in college. I would never think it's worth a lot of money or student loan, but thankfully I did not have to pay that much for my college. And the second thing I would like to say is that I do think that it's important to get the network. So I think being part of an alumni group of people that all went to the same college, that did give me a lot in life that I still use today. So I think the overall picture is no, it's not practical, but yes, it does teach you how to learn, and also it helps you later in life with the network that you create. So have a great day. Bye.

Opinion by @victoria1

An expensive undergraduate degree wasn't worth the cost and left them feeling unprepared for the workforce

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Um, for me, I went to school at a small private school in Massachusetts. Um, I mentioned small and private because it was very expensive. I studied psychology and anthropology. Um, and in my undergrad years, I am not a psychologist. I'm not a psychiatrist, and I don't use my anthropology degree much either. I did continue studying. Um, I did go to grad school for public health, and that had more of a direct impact on what I do now. So, um, when I think about the prompt of, do I think my degree was worth it? I don't think it was. Um, my undergrad experience was very expensive. And while I did make, um, some valuable connections, I don't feel like I was well-prepared to step into the workforce. Um, upon graduating, I did graduate in 2020. So, you know, there was the chaos of the pandemic, but, you know, like the months leading up to graduation, as I was preparing to step into the workforce, I didn't really feel prepared.

Opinion by @ruthie1

Computer science studies were difficult but invaluable, even without finishing the degree

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Um, so I did my degree, uh, in computer science, um, in Jerusalem, and because my parents are academics, I didn't have to pay. So there was no student loan. Um, that's a thing in Israel, is that academics get free academic education for their kids. Maybe that's a whole nother topic. Um, I never finished my degree. I, I, I was two courses short. I even did the courses. I just didn't follow up because I was already working and I had two kids, and at that point it seemed super irrelevant to get the piece of paper. I couldn't have done what I'm doing now, really, without having gone to university. Not even exactly the networking, but the ability to say I have four years of computer science. Um, the things I learned, I don't know, but the discipline doing really hard courses, uh, that I failed and then later succeeded in. Um, so was it worth it? Yeah, absolutely. Was it hard? Oh my goodness. Uh, but here I am 30 years later; if I hadn't gone to university, I think my life would have looked very, very different. Yeah. Yeah.

Opinion by @clarina1

College wasn't worth it: student debt for an unused degree after following the expected path

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Hi, my name is Clarina, and I do not think that my college degree was worth it. I think being so young and having to make such a big decision as to what career I wanted for the rest of my life was very overwhelming for me. I went in undecided, and I didn't make a decision until the end of my sophomore year, and now the degree that I have, I'm not in that field, so now I have to pay off student loans on a degree that I don't use. I just wish I knew that there are other avenues of getting the education that I needed for different jobs that I was interested in. I also feel like I was just following what I was told was the next step, like both my parents went to college, my sister went to college, and so it was just natural for me to also go, but in hindsight, I wish that I did because I don't use my degree, and I don't think that it's worth it.

Opinion by @bobr

University’s value through computer science education, friendships, professional connections and career opportunities

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University was very worthwhile for me. I got a good education, learned computer science, developed lots of friendships and professional connections, and later on, the diploma certainly did help open up career opportunities.