College probably is not worth it for a significant minority of the people who attend, especially when you add into the mix the fact that many of them could attend a good trade school or other non-university educational program to learn a useful skill.
The world needs ditch diggers too!
My daughter and two daughters in law went to 4yr colleges. Now they are all stay at home Mothers. When I asked them if the cost of a college education was worth it they said they would get back to me when they try to find jobs when it was time to go back to work.
One of them has been out of the work force for 9 years and recently applied for a position with an aerospace company. Technology can change considerably in 9 years and she wasn’t up to speed on the way things are being done now. She didn’t get the job.
If one doesn’t know what one wants to do for a career at 18 college is a waste of money.
Trade colleges are good options tho.
It keeps them outta the job market for 4 years!