Is College Still Worth It?

We’re seeing so many college graduates entering the workforce without direction and plenty of mid-level professionals who are unhappy at work, but find the process of a career change both scary and expensive. College degrees as status symbols still exist, but how far does that really carry us these days? This topic has come up for us a lot lately—is a bachelor’s degree still worth the cost?



The college experience is about much more than a degree, so if you have the opportunity to attend, especially at little or no cost to you, it’s definitely still worth it! If you have financial support in the form of scholarships, grants, tuition reimbursement from an employer, or support from parents/relatives this makes the decision an easy one—get that degree! However, if you don’t have the benefit of financial assistance, signing up to accumulate thousands of dollars in student loan debt by the time you’re 22 can be a questionable investment, unless you choose a major that typically leads to a job upon graduation; fields like Engineering, Healthcare, and IT are good examples.

A bachelor’s degree isn’t a ticket to a job offer and many who graduate with degrees in fields like Business, Psychology, Biology, English, and History find themselves reevaluating what kind of career they want when it’s time to graduate. Then, they’re often disappointed by their job prospects and earning potential. So, if you’ll have to pay for college out of pocket or with student loans, consider whether it might be wise to work for a few years in between high school and college. This can be a great way to mature a little bit, save some money, and gain more clarity on what kind of career you want. You also may find out that you can get the skills and training you need from a 2-year degree or from a few specific courses and an apprenticeship or internship.

Whether you’re a current student or a professional looking to make a change, educate yourself on what is both required and preferred in your desired career. And most importantly, give yourself early exposure to career paths that you’re interested in. If you’re looking at a career change, invest time in finding others in the field that you can shadow for a period of time before you sign up to go back to school. If you’re a current student, don’t wait for your senior year to start an internship—get one as early as possible. That way if you discover that you don’t like a job as much as you thought you would, you have more time to adapt and change your major without adding on extra years and tuition dollars.

If you have your heart set on being a doctor or a teacher, then a college degree is going to be necessary. The same is often true if you want to advance into a leadership role—particularly at older more traditional organizations. However, there are plenty of well-paying careers in technology, manufacturing, sales, marketing, insurance, and even law that don’t require a 4-year degree and many non-traditional companies care as much, if not more, about stability, results, and work ethic. If you can exceed sales goals, or de-bug an app, you’ll be hired with or without a degree.

A bachelor’s degree is the best value when it enables you to do something that others are not qualified for. Certifications, licenses, specialized training, and marketable skills lead to job offers and higher starting salaries. This is why it’s important that if you do go to college, you use your time there wisely to ensure you come out with marketable skills and job prospects—especially if you’ll have student loans to re-pay upon graduation. A college degree is always valuable to the individual, but it’s not specifically valuable to employers if it doesn’t enable you to add value, bring in revenue, or solve a problem. These are the things employers care about the most.

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