Counterpoint: It was true for quite some time that a college degree, any degree for that matter, was the ticket. Just because that has seemed to change, and to some degree it has, to a large extent it hasn't, doesn't falsify the past.

As I see it, the college degree and its cost has become a scapegoat for poor government and political organization. Jeez these kids went into how much debt to get a job making how much money!? Well, what are we doing to provide good entry level opportunity and training for our young people? crickets.

Well, our businesses and even our government agencies have outsourced the initial hiring screening to colleges and universities - even today's big tech companies only hire at certain universities.

Government agencies demand specific credentials, whether that's a 4-year degree in a specific topic of study or a certification of some sorts - think Tableau cert for a government data analyst job.

And to bring this all back to how we build and our crappy transportation infrastructure, our entrepreneurship rates are down too - so even if you don't want to go to a 4-year university but instead bake at home and want to open a shop, you can't afford it because the spaces available are too large, there isn't enough foot traffic, and to build something out in the suburbs where you'll get drive-through traffic good luck competing with the efficiency of very very large corporations - i.e. playing on their home turf. Want to sell produce on the side from your home garden? At what farmer's market? The one you have to pay $500 to set up a booth on the sidewalk that everybody has to drive through? Very difficult to supplement your income on that.

So the cost and "uselessness" of the 4 - year degree is pretty well understood and harped on. But we shouldn't over index on that when there are plenty of other associated issues that may be even more important. Basically, we're looking at this big target of college degrees and MBAs or whatever because that's easy to do so - number big make number small. But there are just far more associated issues that contribute to this broad problem and they need attention too.

Even worse in America where you start your career with crippling debt. I believe this is a significant reason for the backlash academia is facing, beyond the cultural ones.

A college degree doesn't really teach a profession. There is a lot of overlap with technical and medical degrees, but these are still exceptions.

Many people in western companies don't really want to do any engineering or research anymore, so it isn't a guarantee as well. They want ready products that keep them from having to think themselves. Investing in knowledge hurts the quarterly report.

Medical degrees are still safe as people still get sick.

A degree has little real value nowadays.

I recently attended a college graduation of a family member. At the start of the ceremony, "latin honor graduates" were asked to stand. 2/3's of the graduating class stood up.

Believe it or not, it didn't used to be this way. Decades ago when I graduated, maybe 10-15% were honors graduates. Being in this group meant you were either smarter than average, you worked your ass off or both.

Nowadays, the main requirement for a degree is money. A degree proves very little beyond the fact that you obtained the money somehow and went through the necessary motions.