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EducationQuiet 8d · day 9

Gallup poll shows American confidence in college education plummeting

Support for higher education has collapsed across all demographic groups since 2013, with just one-third now calling college 'very important.'

newest coverage 8d agosummary written 8d ago21 pieces41 likes & upvotes95 comments Hacker NewsMastodonNewswires

What to know

  • American adults saying college is 'very important' dropped from 70% in 2013 to under 33% today, while those calling it 'not too important' rose five-fold to nearly 30%.
  • The decline spans every demographic group—Democrats and Republicans, all genders and ethnicities—with no exceptions.
  • Analysts and commenters attribute the shift to post-2008 economic pressures, student debt crises, and rising tuition rather than loss of faith in education itself.
  • The internet conversation reflects deep disagreement: some see the decline as rational response to poor ROI, others argue it reflects anti-intellectualism and a misguided focus on jobs over learning.

The dispute Whether the poll decline reflects rational response to poor economic value and credential inflation, or dangerous anti-intellectualism that conflates education's worth with employment outcomes. · positions read across 18 posts and comments

most voices

College is no longer financially rational given rising costs, debt burden, and uncertain job outcomes relative to alternative paths.

  • “I was 'lucky' enough to only spend $30k on my seemingly-useless Computer Science degree. If I could go back and do it again, out of high school, I would go to tradeschool to become an electrician.”

    Magicrafter13 · Hacker News ↗
many voices

College has intrinsic value as education independent of job prospects; the focus on financial ROI reflects anti-intellectualism, not rational assessment.

  • “College should be for becoming educated. Not for getting a job. If paying huge amounts of money isn't worth it to you to be educated, fine. But that doesn't mean the education is bad, just that it's not worth it from a financial…”

    keiferski · Hacker News ↗
some voices

College remains structurally necessary for many careers; skepticism about its value doesn't reflect actual hiring requirements.

  • “It doesn't matter what people think, the question is whether the jobs your kids want to do require a degree or no. Let say they want to be a doctor or a lawyer, then college education is needed.”

    yodsanklai · Hacker News ↗

Gallup Survey organizationBryan Alexander Education analyst

Gallup poll shows American confidence in college education plummeting
bryanalexander.org

How it unfolded 2 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlespostscomments

Peak 15 pieces in 3h at Oct 30, 10 AM; 21 pieces over 9 days (1 article · 2 posts · 18 comments) Oct 30, 7 AM — 3 pieces · 1 article · 2 posts — Hacker News 1, Newswires 1, Mastodon 1Oct 30, 10 AM — 15 pieces · 15 comments — Hacker News 15Oct 30, 1 PM — 1 piece · 1 comment — Hacker News 1Oct 30, 4 PM — quietOct 30, 7 PM — 1 piece · 1 comment — Hacker News 1Oct 30, 10 PM — quietOct 31, 1 AM — quietOct 31, 4 AM — 1 piece · 1 comment — Hacker News 1Oct 31, 7 AM — quietOct 31, 10 AM — quietOct 31, 1 PM — quietOct 31, 4 PM — quietOct 31, 7 PM — quietOct 31, 10 PM — quietNov 1, 1 AM — quietNov 1, 3 AM — quietNov 1, 6 AM — quietNov 1, 9 AM — quietNov 1, 12 PM — quietNov 1, 3 PM — quietNov 1, 6 PM — quietNov 1, 9 PM — quietNov 2, 12 AM — quietNov 2, 3 AM — quietNov 2, 6 AM — quietNov 2, 9 AM — quietNov 2, 12 PM — quietNov 2, 3 PM — quietNov 2, 6 PM — quietNov 2, 9 PM — quietNov 3, 12 AM — quietNov 3, 3 AM — quietNov 3, 6 AM — quietNov 3, 9 AM — quietNov 3, 12 PM — quietNov 3, 3 PM — quietNov 3, 6 PM — quietNov 3, 9 PM — quietNov 4, 12 AM — quietNov 4, 3 AM — quietNov 4, 6 AM — quietNov 4, 9 AM — quietNov 4, 12 PM — quietNov 4, 3 PM — quietNov 4, 6 PM — quietNov 4, 9 PM — quietNov 5, 12 AM — quietNov 5, 3 AM — quietNov 5, 6 AM — quietNov 5, 9 AM — quietNov 5, 12 PM — quietNov 5, 3 PM — quietNov 5, 6 PM — quietNov 5, 9 PM — quietNov 6, 12 AM — quietNov 6, 3 AM — quietNov 6, 6 AM — quietNov 6, 9 AM — quietNov 6, 12 PM — quietNov 6, 3 PM — quietNov 6, 6 PM — quietNov 6, 9 PM — quietYesterday, 12 AM — quietYesterday, 3 AM — quietYesterday, 6 AM — quietYesterday, 9 AM — quietYesterday, 12 PM — quietYesterday, 3 PM — quietYesterday, 6 PM — quietYesterday, 9 PM — quietToday, 12 AM — quietToday, 3 AM — quietToday, 6 AM — quietToday, 9 AM — quiet 1–2
Oct 31Nov 1Nov 2Nov 3Nov 4Nov 5Nov 6yesterdaynow · 11:26 AM ET
  1. 2

    Analyst attributes poll decline to economic reality, not education value itself

    The author of the Bryan Alexander article argues the poll measures perceived economic value of degrees, not intrinsic educational worth. The collapse began post-2008 recession when college-educated workers faced unemployment, student debt crises emerged, and inequality widened—factors that shifted the calculus away from traditional four-year degrees toward alternatives like trade school.

    “Rather, I think this poll measures what people think about what a college degree provides in economic, social, and political opportunities.”
    — Bryan Alexander article

    • The problem is ultimately what it always is - money.Instead of higher education being something that people do because they want to do it, because they're passionate about a subject or simply want to grow and learn - it became viewed as an edge that would help you get jobs more quickly or better-paying ones. You spent some of your money and time…

      Night_ThastusHacker News8d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 18 posts in this stretch

    • I'm in Europe so maybe my view is different, though there's a lot of that thinking over here too: the only possible value of higher education is the advantage it gives me in relation to others (competitiveness, perception...).But there are other more important (imho) values.First, it is an excellent opportunity for personal worth. Socially: change…

      agarsevHacker News9d agoview on Hacker News ↗

    • I think there are several interrelated factors at play here1) is the dilution of the “college” degree in terms of quality - an online degree does not generate the same outcomes as from a highly selective institution.2) value for money for a college degree keeps declining (unless you get it for free) - tuitions have gone up astronomically and…

      balderdashHacker News9d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    all of them →
  2. 1

    Decline spans all demographic groups without exception

    Gallup's breakdown by demographics—Democrats, Republicans, men, women, all ethnicities—shows double-digit declines across every group. Even groups historically most supportive of college report substantial drops in perceived importance.

    “The decline in the perceived importance of college is seen across all major demographic groups.”
    — Gallup
  3. background

    Gallup releases poll showing college importance at historic low — Gallup's long-running survey finds that the share of U.S. adults saying college is 'very important' has plummeted from 70% in 2013 to less than one-third today. Simultaneously, those calling college 'not too important' rose from 6% to nearly 30%. The largest share now selects 'fairly important,' which the article describes as 'not exactly a ringing endorsement.'

What people are saying 14 voices from 1 site · best of 18 · verbatim

Still unanswered
  • Will employers who still require degrees begin to relax that requirement if the perception of college value continues falling?
  • How much of the decline is due to credential dilution (more people getting degrees, lowering their relative value) versus actual quality decline in higher education itself?