Is College Really Necessary?

Times they are a-changin'...and with that so are thoughts about college.

About one in five young adults of age say they may choose not to go to college. Many others see a less conventional path through education as a good idea. We're finding more and more college-age kids considering taking a gap year between high school and college.

“There are more options today,” Dara Luber, a senior retirement manager at TD Ameritrade, told MarketWatch. “More students are looking at online courses, doing classes at community college, commuting from home, or going to a trade school.”

While college attendance has risen from 14.8 million two decades ago, it is expected to remain relatively steady over the next five years. It appearers the $1.5 trillion in student debt has given younger students pause for thought.

The average borrower now leaves college with about $37,000 of loan debt, up more than $10,000 from 10 years ago.

“Rising college expenses are changing the modern college experience,” Luber said.

Just over one in four young millennials say they are delaying college due to the cost, according to the TD Ameritrade study.

It seems A lot of young Americans don’t think a four-year degree is essential.

About half — 49% — of young millennials said their degree was ‘very or somewhat unimportant’ to their current job.