Is College Worth it Anymore?

Right now, I believe that is how most college students are currently feeling.  Between the shift to online learning and the adjustments in social and residential environments, there is a rumble that is building.  It is what most non-higher education affiliates were saying over the summer, but only now, are the enrolled students finally feeling it: understanding that it is not worth it.

If your college student is considering dropping out, do not force them to stay.  Think about this from a mental health and financial standpoint.  Will they struggle with depression because of isolation?  Will their grades translate to decent grades if they stay?  If not, it is not worth it.  Mental health will far outweigh the need to “stay the course.”  There is a lot of higher education statistics I could drop right now (i.e., percentage of students that matriculate to their sophomore year, and from there the abysmal rates that continue to drop within the 6-year graduation cohort).  Realistically, if your kid is struggling right now in any arena related to their college experience, consider adopting this mantra for yourself: it is not worth it.

Now, stop the bus in letting them withdraw without a plan.  They absolutely need a plan.  Coming home to not be enrolled in classes, not work, and sulk about what they are missing out on sounds like a recipe for a boundary-less disaster.  Always have a plan!  Know that the need for a college degree and earning one, is not going anywhere.  Colleges available for your adult child to attend will mostly remain. They can have a different experience in moving forward with their life - right now, that is worth it.

They need opportunities for life experiences.  Options that include actual teaching and community building.  If you think colleges campuses were the only place where this was available, you are wrong.  Programs and opportunities have stepped up to the challenge providing a safe environment for young adults to grow and thrive, even during the pandemic. 

Random quarantining, or back-to-back testing, is exhausting to the developing minds.  They agreed to it when they registered for classes, but the reality is that one student may jeopardize an entire dorm.  In a non-COVID world, the college experience was everything and more that a young adult craved.  Now, with the vision of college not matching up to the reality of their situation, more and more students are over it.  And it is not just first-year students either.  I think we can anticipate that unless something drastic happens in the next three months, colleges will see an even more significant drop in enrollment for Spring 2021.

I don’t blame them.  If I was in college right now, I’d say it wasn’t worth it either.

For questions or comments contact Joanna.