Go to college — but maybe don't

As a first-generation college student, my diploma meant the world to me, even before I had it in hand. Being the first in my family to obtain a degree wasn't just a personal achievement; it was supposed to be a ticket to a more secure financial future.

Fifteen years later, with my college loans only recently paid off, I'm not so sure it delivered.

That skepticism is spreading. Last year, only one-third of Americans agreed that a four-year college degree is worth its cost, according to an NBC News Poll. And with AI reshaping entire industries overnight, the question isn't going away.

I reached out to nine educators, economists, and workforce experts to hear how they're talking with their kids about college. Nearly all of them agreed that college still has value — but far less than we've been told.

Skip college, but not without a plan

Entrepreneur Dana Mercer has two children who skipped college entirely — one runs a trades business, one builds software. Mercer says she never pushed them toward a degree because "college was designed for a world that no longer exists."

"A diploma does not have to be the entry point to a good life, especially in a world where the job it was meant to unlock has already been automated," she explains.

Learn skills that actually transfer

Rachel Sohn, founder of a workforce development nonprofit, sees real danger in the four-year model for her teenage kids. She's steered them toward apprenticeships and certifications instead.

"When I talk to my children about their futures, I frame college less as an opportunity and more as a very expensive gamble," she says.

Don't hide from AI — let it replace the degree

Several experts say that AI has quietly made the college credential redundant for a growing slice of the workforce.

"AI is going to reshape nearly every industry," says one tech founder. "And the fluency you need in that space? You can build it in six months on YouTube, not four years in a lecture hall."

College remains key — for the institutions, not the students

Mark Ellison, a labor economist, says that a degree is still a "core expectation" in many hiring pipelines — but he's clear-eyed about why.

"College remains the most proven path to a certain kind of life," he says. "But we should ask who benefits most from that belief."

Calculating value based on debt

Ana Delgado, a financial planner who works primarily with young adults, says the value of a college degree "depends entirely on what you borrow to get it."

She wouldn't encourage her own children to take on six figures of debt to study anything — no matter the school.

"The act of putting ambitious young people into a room full of new ideas has value," she says. "But so does not starting your adult life in a hole. Unless they're getting significant aid, I'm not sure it's worth it."