Years after graduation, you’ll probably realize that the college you attended didn’t really matter at all. You could have gotten the degree almost anywhere, and most people wouldn't care where you graduated from, as long as you managed to get that diploma.
But where you attended might matter to you personally because of the experiences you had there. You would have never met your closest friends from college if you had gone somewhere else, and you might have had the opportunity to meet professors who changed your life. Because of that, you might look back on your college years fondly, even if it feels like you were attending lectures a lifetime ago.
In the United States, roughly 18.4 million students were enrolled in colleges during the spring of 2025. About 55% of enrolled students are women, and the vast majority of undergraduates are under the age of 30. 41% of students attend public four-year universities, while 22.2% attend private nonprofit four-year colleges. A quarter of students are enrolled at public two-year universities, and about 5% are enrolled at either a public PAB or a private for-profit four-year university.
In some ways, getting a degree today is more accessible than ever, as nearly 5 million students across the country are attending classes entirely online. However, the cost of earning a degree is a huge roadblock for many students. Education Data Initiative reports that the average cost of a college education in 2025 was $38,270 per year per student.
Earning a degree can be even more expensive if you want to attend a private university, as the average cost of tuition at a private college is almost four times as much as attending an in-state public university. Plus, when you go to college, you’re not only paying for tuition. You also have to pay for room and board (unless you’re lucky enough to stay at home), textbooks, supplies, and more.
Because of the exorbitant costs of earning a degree, many students end up saddled with student loan debt. In fact, 61% of recent bachelor’s degree graduates had to take out student loans to help finance their education. Nearly half of the students who borrowed money owe over $25,000 back, and over one-fifth of American households have some sort of student loan debt. Meanwhile, it typically takes graduates around 20 years to pay all of their loans back.
Because of all of the economic struggles that may come with going to college, over half of Americans now say that a four-year college degree isn’t worth it. And while going to college certainly isn’t for everyone, it can come along with great benefits for those who thrive in that kind of environment. One of the biggest pluses is having a higher earning potential. In the U.S., men with degrees tend to earn about $655,000 more in their lifetime than men without, while college-educated women typically earn about $450,000 more than their peers who didn’t get a degree.
At the same time, going to college might provide you with many more job opportunities. It always looks good when an applicant has a degree on their resume, but making connections through your university can go a long way too. Considering how difficult it is to land a job nowadays, workers should take advantage of any leg up that they have!
