Younger Americans are starting to wonder if their expensive college degrees were worth it.
Just 56% of adults under the age of 30 who went to college said the benefits of their education exceeded the costs, according to the latest Federal Reserve study of household finances. That compares with 82% of those age 60 or over.
The skepticism is likely tied to the ballooning amount of debt that younger Americans had to take on to pay for degrees -- largely the result of the long climb in tuition fees.
The Fed noted that part of the gap can also be explained by the fact that “older respondents have had a longer time to experience the benefit of their education.”
The study, published on Monday, is based on the latest annual Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking or SHED. Interviews with 11,000 respondents were conducted in October and November 2021.
The survey found that many Americans who go to college are relying on other forms of debt as well as student loans to pay for it. About 19% said they put some of their higher-education costs on their credit cards, while 4% tapped a home equity line of credit.
“Collectively, 24% of borrowers had one or more forms of education debt besides student loans for their own education,” the Fed report said.
The same was true of Americans who borrowed money to help their children or grandchildren get through college. Among that group, 88% used the special student-loan programs targeted for parents, while 12% added credit-card debt and 9% home equity lines.
When asked to look back on their education, the most frequently voiced regret -- among Americans who hold a bachelor’s degree or higher -- was the field of study they chose.
Few people at any level of qualification said they would have completed less education if they could make their life decisions again. But almost half of those who studied humanities and arts subjects said they would have chosen a different major.