New survey data from the nonprofit American Student Assistance shows that teen interest in college is down while interest in nondegree paths is on the rise.
Meanwhile, parents are skeptical of options outside the traditional college pathway to work.
Nearly half of all students surveyed – 45% – weren’t interested in going to college. About 14% said they planned to attend trade or technical schools, apprenticeships and technical boot camp programs, and 38% were considering those options.
66% of teens surveyed said parents supported their plans to pursue a nondegree route, compared with 82% whose parents encouraged them to attend college.
Everyone’s got anecdotes but I swear I’ve been hearing the same thing about trades jobs where proof is anecdotes and then data paints it as generally worse than a university degree
https://fortune.com/2025/07/02/gen-z-ditching-college-secure-trade-jobs-blue-collar-electricians-and-plumbers-worst-unemployment-rate-than-office-jobs/
https://wallethub.com/edu/best-entry-level-jobs/3716
I’d suggest young people not rely on anecdotes and focus on data. Don’t trust a person when they say they’re happy with their office job or their trades job. Don’t trust strangers/people you barely ever talk to to be truthful about the condition of their health; most people spare people the weight of knowing their mental and physical struggles
Instead look at unemployment rates per profession that you’re considering. Depression rates. Suicide rates. Salary trajectory and median wage by career stage. Like early, mid, senior, and wage at retirement. There’s data out there for some professions like average yearly medical costs by age in profession. Average benefits value like health/dental/vision/401k match/etc data.
It’s a ton to really consider but the ones that are able to do so without just shutting off their brains and turning off the web browser from stress/frustration will have done themselves a favor
Most people learn statistics in college though.
Also look into informational interviewing and maybe see if someone can connect you with a current job-holder. People are surprisingly nice and it may be feasible to get their time to get an understanding of their field and daily work life.
Absolutely follow the data and put in the effort to find out.