Some Surprising Statistics about Going to College

The poll is from USA TODAY and Public Agenda. It’s about college and how Americans feel about the institution. All agree — politics aside — that getting a bachelor’s degree will help one find a good job.

Most also think that kind of education improves society.

The poll also found people think a bachelor’s degree — however — is deemed as being too expensive and too time-consuming for most working adults. Just over half of us think the benefits of getting that degree offset the cost.

What’s most surprising is that young people — those most likely to go to college — are the most dubious of the value of that bachelor’s degree or anything higher. Many think a college education can feel “exclusionary” and “pricey.”

Here’s more from the poll:

• *75% of us say it is a problem that employers require a college degree for a job that doesn’t need one
• *66% of us say colleges are stuck in the past and don’t really meet the needs of today’s students
• *83% say the high cost of college makes it tough for low-income students to get an education
• *60% say a degree is too time consuming