From the United States to India to the United Kingdom, college degrees are costing more while guaranteeing less.
Photo: George Pak / Pexels
Introduction — The Promise vs. The Reality
College was supposed to be the answer.
For generations, it was straightforward: work hard in high school, go to university, get a degree, secure a good job. That pathway lifted families out of poverty. It felt like a guarantee.
But that promise is breaking.
In 2026, students pay more than ever before to attend college. They graduate with heavier debt. Yet graduate employment is no longer guaranteed. In India, 40% of young graduates cannot find work. In America, many work jobs that don’t require degrees.
This raises a question worth asking: Is a college degree still worth the price?
The Numbers Behind the Problem
In the United States: The sticker price of college sounds crushing. A four-year degree at a public university costs $123,960. At a private university, $261,880. But most students don’t pay the sticker price. After grants and aid, net tuition at public universities averages a few thousand dollars per year. Average student debt for bachelor’s degree recipients is approximately $30,000 — still a burden, but not the catastrophe the sticker price suggests.
In India: India adds 5 million graduates every year. Employers create only 2.8 million graduate-level jobs annually. For young graduates aged 15-25, the unemployment rate is 40%. Among unemployed youth, 67% are college graduates. About 6-7% of all graduates secure stable, permanent salaried positions within a year. The rest drift into informal work, gig jobs, or self-employment out of necessity.
In the United Kingdom: Tuition fees in England are capped at £9,790 per year ($12,200 USD). Published English fees are higher than typical US public university net tuition after aid. Graduates under Plan 2 repay 9% of income above £29,385 annually for 30 years. Maintenance loans of up to £14,135 per year help with living costs.
The pattern everywhere is the same: the cost keeps rising, but the pathway to stability keeps narrowing.
🇺🇸 America — When a Degree Becomes a Financial Gamble
Meet Marcus. He graduated from a public university in 2023 with a degree in business administration. His family paid part of the cost directly. Marcus borrowed approximately $25,000.
He found an entry-level job in marketing paying $38,000 per year. After taxes and rent, he has $200 left each month to pay his student loans. At that rate, it will take him 10 years to repay what he borrowed.
Then there’s Jennifer. She graduated the same year, from the same university, with a degree in computer science. She borrowed the same amount. But her starting salary was $95,000. She will repay her debt in 3 years.
This is the American reality: The value of a degree depends almost entirely on what degree you get and what you actually pay.
The sticker price of $124,000 for a public university sounds devastating. But the real number — what families actually pay after aid — varies wildly. A student at an average state university might pay $40,000 total after aid. Or they might pay $80,000. The uncertainty itself is significant.
At elite universities, graduates earn significantly more, and their debt is often lower due to financial aid. Northwestern graduates average $36,425 in debt. These schools have strong networks. Employers actively recruit from them.
At average universities, the return on investment is uncertain. Many graduates work jobs that don’t require a degree. Some work with $25,000-30,000 in debt — overqualified and underemployed. Others find reasonable jobs and repay their loans over a decade.
The problem: when you are 17 or 18, deciding which university to attend, you cannot know which category you will fall into.
Read more: What Is the Average Cost of College Tuition in 2026? — SoFi, August 2026
🇮🇳 India — When Degrees Don’t Lead to Doors
Meet Priya. She studied engineering for four years at a private college in Mumbai. Her family spent ₹15 lakh ($18,000 USD) on her education.
Priya graduated in 2024. As of September 2026, she is still searching for an engineering job.
She is not alone. According to the State of Working India 2026 report by Azim Premji University, nearly 40% of graduates aged 15 to 25 are unemployed. Among young unemployed people, 67% hold college degrees.
The employment reality is more difficult than the unemployment rate suggests:
About 6-7% of all graduates secure permanent salaried positions within a year of graduation. Everyone else enters informal work, gig employment, or self-employment. This is not independence. This is instability.
For engineering specifically, the crisis is severe. Only 3-7% of engineering graduates have practical skills that match market demand. India’s four largest IT companies — TCS, Infosys, Wipro, and HCL — hired 2,25,000 fresh graduates in 2023. By 2024, that dropped to 60,000. AI automation has eliminated the entry-level training roles that used to launch engineering careers.
Priya has an engineering degree but lacks AI or data science skills. Her classmates have accepted jobs completely unrelated to engineering — customer service, administrative work, retail — jobs that pay less than half what an engineer would earn.
The waste is significant: India invests enormous resources producing engineers. Families invest their life savings. The result: millions of overqualified, underemployed young people whose potential is not being used.
Read more: Graduate unemployment shadows India’s degree boom — Policy Circle, July 2026
🇬🇧 The United Kingdom — Debt Over 30 Years
Meet David. He studied accounting at a British university from 2019 to 2023. His tuition and living costs totaled approximately £39,160.
When David graduated in 2023, he owed £39,160 in student debt. But it works differently than American debt.
He will not start repaying until he earns £29,385 annually (the Plan 2 threshold). Then he will repay 9% of any income above that threshold. If he earns £35,000, he repays 9% of £5,615 = approximately £505 per year.
The difference from American debt: if he earns less than £29,385, he pays nothing. But he must repay for 30 years. If he hasn’t cleared the debt after 30 years, the government writes off the remaining balance.
For David, this works out. His accounting degree is in demand. He found a job at £32,000 per year. He will repay his debt within 15-20 years.
But for someone with a degree leading to lower-paying work, the system is different from America. If you earn £31,000 forever, you repay only £144 per year. The government eventually writes off the debt. You’re not trapped in monthly payments you cannot afford. But you carry this obligation for 30 years.
The British system differs from America in important ways:
Published English fees are higher than typical US public university net tuition after aid — £9,790 per year. But living expenses are high, especially in London. Maintenance loans help but don’t fully cover rent. Many British students work part-time while studying.
Others leave with total debt around £40,000-50,000 including living costs. That’s real money. That’s years of constraint.
The advantage: you don’t face catastrophic monthly bills if you can’t find well-paying work. The disadvantage: you carry this obligation for three decades regardless of your circumstances.
The Degree Inflation Problem
Here is a paradox:
More people have degrees than ever, but employers are not raising salaries to match. The credential has devalued.
In 1990, a college degree was unusual. Employers saw it as a signal of intelligence and work ethic. People with degrees earned significantly more.
In 2026, 35% of Americans have a college degree. In the UK, over 50% of young people attend university. In India, among the 18-23 age group, over 28% are enrolled in higher education.
Now jobs that previously required only a high school diploma require a degree. Entry-level positions now demand “bachelor’s degree required.”
The result: More people have degrees, but the salary premium has shrunk. You’re not earning dramatically more. You’re just qualifying for the same jobs that thousands of other degree-holders also qualify for.
AI Is Changing the Equation
The AI disruption is accelerating this problem.
AI is automating entry-level work. The jobs that used to be stepping stones — where you learned skills and built experience — are disappearing. In India, AI-driven coding tools handle tasks that used to train fresh engineers. In America, AI is replacing customer service jobs, data analysis roles, and basic bookkeeping — jobs that recent graduates relied on.
This creates a catch-22: You need experience to get a good job. But entry-level jobs that teach you skills are vanishing. The door closes before you can get in.
But there is a counterweight: Graduates with AI skills, data science knowledge, and cloud computing expertise are in high demand. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, data scientists are projected to grow 36% through 2033, with median salaries of $108,020. Engineers who can work alongside AI systems earn more.
The lesson: A generic degree is less valuable than ever. A specialized degree in a skill-shortage area is more valuable than ever.
So, Is College Still Worth It?
The honest answer: It depends.
High-value degrees:
- Engineering (especially with AI/data skills): Starting salaries $70,000-100,000+ in America
- Computer science: $85,000-120,000+; job growth 35-40% through 2033
- Data science: $108,000 median; 36% job growth
- Nursing: Consistent demand, 1.42% unemployment rate
- Medicine/law: High earning potential but long training requirements
Low-value degrees:
- General business: Oversaturated, many jobs do not require degree
- Humanities: Lower starting salaries, uncertain employment
- Some social sciences: Similar challenges
Elite universities vs. average universities:
- Elite: Networks matter. Employers actively recruit. Financial aid often reduces costs. But admission is competitive.
- Average: Network is smaller. Employers do not actively recruit. Starting salaries are lower in relation to net costs.
The cost-benefit question:
A degree from an expensive private university at full cost ($261,880) that leads to a $40,000/year job is a poor investment.
A degree from a public university where you pay net costs of $40,000 total and earn $70,000/year is reasonable. You break even in 5-7 years.
According to Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce, most public university bachelor’s degrees break even 8-10 years after graduation. STEM degrees earn median salaries of $98,000 compared to $72,830 for all bachelor’s degree holders.
Read more: College ROI: Which Degrees Pay Off the Most? (2026 Data) — DegreCalc, June 2026
What Students Should Do
Before choosing a college:
- Research net price, not sticker price. What does your family actually pay after aid? This is the real cost.
- Research actual graduate salaries for the specific program you plan to study. Not average salaries — actual starting salaries for this degree in this field.
- Calculate total cost, including living expenses. A “cheap” university can become expensive if living costs are high.
- Compare the specific program, not just the university. Some universities have strong engineering programs but weak business programs.
- Consider vocational training or community college. A two-year degree costing $20,000 that leads to a $50,000 job is often a better return than a four-year degree costing $100,000 that leads to a $45,000 job.
- Build practical skills alongside your degree. Internships, projects, and real-world experience matter more than the degree alone.
Conclusion — The Degree Isn’t Dead, But the Guarantee Is
College still provides real value in many professions. Doctors, engineers, nurses, lawyers, and accountants genuinely need degrees. The degree opens doors that would otherwise be closed.
But the old promise — “get a degree and you’ll be successful” — is no longer reliable. That promise was simple. It is gone.
The real question is no longer “Do I need a degree?” It is “Is this particular degree from this particular university worth what I’m paying for it?”
Some degrees are worth it. Some are not. The difference between a good decision and a bad one can be $50,000-100,000 in debt.
In 2026, choosing a college is less like buying insurance and more like making an investment that will define your early adulthood.
Students who ask hard questions before enrolling — who calculate the return instead of following the emotional pull of prestige — will make better choices than those who assume all degrees are created equal.
The college diploma is not worthless. But it is no longer a guarantee of anything except debt.
By The Lion Capital Editorial Team | September 2026