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By Martha McHardy
US News Reporter
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Most Generation Z graduates now think college was a waste of money, according to a new poll.
Why It Matters
The sharp rise in Gen Z graduates who believe their college education was a waste of money signals a growing disillusionment with the traditional higher education model. As tuition costs continue to soar and student debt reaches historic highs, many young adults are questioning whether a degree offers the financial and professional security it once promised. This shift in perception could have long-term consequences for universities, the labor market, and broader economic mobility, especially as alternative pathways like trade schools, online certifications, and direct-to-career programs gain popularity.
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What To Know
A new poll conducted by Indeed between March 27-31 among 772 U.S. adults, found 51 percent of Gen Z graduates now say their degree was a "waste of money."
That is compared with 41 percent of millennials and just 20 percent of baby boomers. Overall, more than a third of all graduates now say their degree was a waste of money, according to the poll, which had a margin of error of +/- 4.1 percentage points.
Sean Lyons, Associate Dean at the School of Business and Economics at the University of Guelph, told Newsweek that he's not surprised by the results of Indeed's poll, which comes as the average cost of a bachelor's degree in the United States has doubled in the last two decades to over $38,000. And for some subjects, like psychology, philosophy or English, it can take over 20 years in the workforce for the degree to pay for itself, according to the Education Data Initiative.
"I don't find this surprising at all," Lyons said.
He added that there are two major forces shaping why younger generations are struggling with their career outcomes compared with those before them.
First, the economy and labor market have fundamentally changed.
"The skill set for employment in today's post-industrial economy requires technical skills that are not typical of what baby boomers, Gen Xers, or even millennials required to succeed," Lyons explains.
Advances in technology have eliminated many lower-skilled jobs, while high-paying, secure careers increasingly demand specialized expertise. Although colleges have tried to keep up by offering highly specialized programs, Lyons warns that graduates now face a situation "a bit like threading a needle" when trying to land a good job in such narrow fields—a challenge previous generations didn't face to the same extent.
Second, Lyons says graduates' expectations around college degrees have shifted.
"In prior generations, a college degree was relatively rare, so it commanded a career premium," he notes.
While only 10 percent of Americans had a college degree around 1970, today nearly 40 percent do, and the number with advanced degrees has also soared. This "academic arms race" has made a degree necessary, but no longer sufficient, for professional success, he said.
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Meanwhile, the cost of tuition and fees across all universities in the United States over the past two decades have jumped between 32 percent and 45 percent over the past two decades, according to U.S. News, while total student loan debt has ballooned to nearly $2 trillion.
And the poll showed that for many graduates, student debt lingers long after their diploma is in their hands. More than half (52 percent) of respondents said they left school with education loans to pay off, with millennials particularly affected—58 percent reported carrying debt into their careers. And those with student debt (41 percent) were more likely to say their degree was a waste of money compared to those without debt (31 percent).
But the impact of student debt goes beyond financial strain. Nearly four in ten (38 percent) said their student debt hurt their professional growth more than their degree helped it.
A growing number of Gen Z graduates are questioning whether college was even necessary: 68 percent believe they could perform their jobs without a degree, compared to just 49 percent of baby boomers. A recent economic analysis shows that employers increasingly view high school and college graduates as more interchangeable, seeing less distinction between their skills than in the past. Yet despite this shift, 67 percent of respondents said they would be bothered to learn that a colleague landed a similar role without a degree.
The poll also showed that the spread of artificial intelligence into all parts of education and the workplace has made college graduates question their degree even more, with 30 percent reporting that they feel AI has made their degree irrelevant, with the number jumping to 45 percent for Gen Z.
But Kyle M.K., a career trend expert at Indeed, told Fortune: "AI is more of an amplifier than a pink slip. AI won't invalidate a solid education, but it will reward those who keep upgrading their toolkit."
According to the Social Science Research Council, an estimated 4.3 million young people are now deemed NEETs—meaning "not in education, employment, or training."
But Lyons stressed that Gen Z needs to think beyond their first job.
"If you judge the value of a college education solely on the quality of the first job you get in a tough economy, of course it's going to seem like a disappointing return on your investment," he said.
Still, he points out, despite the tougher conditions, college graduates "continue to earn significantly more and have far lower rates of unemployment" compared to those with only a high school diploma —meaning the long-term payoff of a degree remains strong, even if it's not as immediate or guaranteed as it was for past generations.
What People Are Saying
**Sean Lyons, Associate Dean at the School of Business and Economics at the University of Guelph, told Newsweek: "**When we compare generations on their career outcomes there are really two things at play. First, we need to appreciate how the economy and the labor market have shifted over time. Clearly the skill set for employment in today's post-industrial economy requires technical skills that are not typical of what Baby Boomers, Gen Xers or even Millennials required to succeed in their careers. Each wave of new technologies eliminates the need for lower-skilled technical jobs and increases the skills needed for top-end jobs. This results in a narrowing of skillsets for high-paying secure jobs to a smaller subset of technical expertise.
"For Boomers, a college degree in any area was sufficient to secure a middle management position and have a good life. With each passing generation, new technologies and the relentless corporate drive to create shareholder wealth have eliminated jobs for people without specialized skills. Educational institutions have tried to keep up with the pace of change by building highly specialized degree programs. But graduates of these programs might have high expectations of finding a good job in a very narrow field of specialization, which is a bit like threading a needle. Previous generations weren't so narrowly focused when they started their careers.
"The second issue relates to graduates' expectations for their career outcomes post-graduation. In prior generations, a college degree was relatively rare, so it commanded a career premium. Only 10 percent of the population had a college degree when boomers were graduating around 1970, compared to almost 40 percent of the population now. Also, the number of Americans with advanced degrees has increased significantly over the past 20 years, so there's a bit of an academic arms race taking place. It's clear that a college degree is a necessary condition for a professional career, but it's not a sufficient condition. This can be a tough pill to swallow for Gen Z, whose parents might not have a college education.
"Also, college students tend to place a lot of importance on the first job they secure after they graduate as a metric of the value of their college degree. For sure, the first job matters, but it's just the beginning. Modern careers require continuous learning and upskilling. Many professionals will need a combination of work experience and additional education or training beyond their college degree to secure good professional jobs. If you judge the value of a college education solely on the quality of the first job you get in a tough economy, of course it's going to seem like a disappointing return on your investment. You really have to think beyond job one. But compared to people with a high school diploma, college graduates continue to earn significantly more and have far lower rates of unemployment. Even though the payoff of a college degree might not be as guaranteed as it was in previous generations, it's still vastly better than the alternative."
Kyle M.K., a career trend expert at Indeed, told Fortune: "These realities are nudging universities and employers to shift focus from pedigree to practical skill. In fact, 52 percent of U.S. job postings on Indeed don't list any formal education requirement."
Christine Cruzvergara, chief education strategy officer at Handshake, told Fortune: "It's shortsighted to focus only on immediate employment, as that makes the assumption that the value of higher education is only to get your first job. When in reality, higher education contributes to career advancement opportunities, exposure to a variety of fields, aids in self-discovery, and develops management and leadership skills."
What Happens Next
The number of college-educated Americans is expected to shrink in the coming years because of a combination of factors, including a projected decline in the number of high school graduates and changing attitudes toward higher education, according to research by ICEF USA.
Update 4/26/25, 13:36 p.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from Sean Lyons.
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