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Nearly 2 in 3 Americans now say college degrees aren't worth the financial cost, survey finds

30 Nov 2025 By foxnews

A new survey from NBC News found that two-thirds of Americans don't think four-year college degrees are worth the cost.

The survey found that only 33% of registered voters agree that a four-year college degree is "worth the cost because people have a better chance to get a good job and earn more money over their lifetime."

Sixty-three percent of Americans who took the survey said they think a four-year college degree is "not worth the cost because people often graduate without specific job skills and with a large amount of debt to pay off," NBC reported.

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Americans were roughly split on the question in a 2017 survey.

Forty-nine percent believed that a degree was worth the cost, while 47% said it wasn't.

CNBC reportedly asked the same question in 2013 as part of the All American Economic Survey. Fifty-three percent said a degree was worth the investment, and 40% said it was not.

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The average cost of tuition and fees plus room and board for a four-year private college was around $58,600 in the 2024-2025 school year, according to CNBC.

A Democratic pollster who helped conduct the survey told NBC the shift in the poll was "remarkable" and said the promise that a college degree ensured a better life appears to be in doubt for many Americans.

"What is really surprising about it is that everybody has moved. It's not just people who don't have a college degree," Jeff Horwitt of Hart Research Associates told NBC.