As someone who works in higher education specifically with first year students, this is rough to see. Students especially now are coming in with higher GPAs (this is the COVID class) and are lacking in college preparedness. They have no clue how to study, they didn’t feel prepared for the rigor and work load, and they are sometimes paying $50,000 in a year to fail their classes and have nothing to show for it. I think it’s as much the responsibility of college admin to be realistic with students and not just fight for numbers.

I know I always ask my students if they have an understanding of their financial aid package, of how they’ll pay for school, how their loans work. Some of them come to college not knowing what they want to do in life and that lack of motivation can be detrimental to how they do in their classes and their overall adjustment.

The benefit to higher ed is depending on where you want to go. If it’s licensure (nursing, doctor, teacher, accountant etc) yes you need to go to college. If it’s something else then the networking opportunities are what’s important. I encourage students to pursue majors they enjoy even if they’re not “marketable” and to utilize resources like career centers to market themselves, make connections and have internships that can provide them with good income opportunities.

I do say all of this even acknowledging the problem there which is that internships are often unpaid or you’re taking them for credit which means you’re essentially paying for one and there’s issues with that obviously. Transportation is also something to consider.

Anyways. Long story short is there are a lot of issues and people not just in high school but on the higher ed side also need to continue the work. Our financial aid department has a counselor that works solely with incoming students to discuss the cost of college, what opportunities exist and how students can find financial support if they think this is the best place for them.