Across the country, professors are sounding the alarm about something that used to be non‑negotiable in higher education: basic reading. At the same time, families are staring down price tags that can easily top $100,000 and wondering if the payoff is really there. Put bluntly, more students are walking onto campus unable to read college‑level text, while the cost of a four‑year degree keeps climbing into luxury‑car territory.
That collision is forcing a hard reset on what college is for, who it serves, and whether a traditional bachelor’s still makes sense for every 18‑year‑old. The stakes are not abstract; they show up in anxious first‑years, frustrated faculty, and graduates who did everything “right” and still feel shortchanged.
When freshmen can’t read the syllabus
Faculty who teach first‑year courses say the shift is not just about students preferring TikTok to textbooks. Some report that Gen Z are arriving to campus unable to follow a short article or even read a sentence out loud with confidence, a change they trace to disrupted schooling and a broader collapse in daily reading habits. One professor described how Her observation in class reflected a bigger pattern: nearly half of all Americans did not read a single book in 2025, a figure that helps explain why so many students now freeze when faced with dense text. Those same Americans are then surprised when their kids hit a wall in freshman comp.
Instructors say this is not about intelligence, it is about practice. Reports describe how Gen Z are arriving to college unable to even read a sentence smoothly, which leaves them anxious in seminars and lost in subjects that assume strong literacy. Another account notes that Reading is on the decline and that this slide has wide‑ranging impacts, from mental health to the skills that elite achievers have in common. One major issue, as One analysis puts it, is not hostility toward reading but an inability to stick with it long enough to build stamina.
Professors lower the bar, then worry about the fallout
Faced with students who cannot parse a paragraph, colleges are quietly rewriting the rules. Some humanities instructors describe cutting back on long novels, swapping in short excerpts, and spending class time on skills that used to be handled in middle school. At Pitt, for example, How Humanities professors are adapting includes more guided reading, explicit vocabulary work, and assignments that assume weaker literacy amidst AI tools that can mask those gaps. Those Pitt faculty are trying to keep standards meaningful without failing half the class.
Elsewhere, instructors are blunter about the pressure to pass students who are not ready. One report quotes Patrick McDonald, identified as a Michigan Correspondent, describing how College students are increasingly unprepared for serious reading, which in turn forces institutions to lower academic standards. That same account cites the figure 57 to mark the class year of one observer, a reminder that this is not a distant problem but one unfolding in real time on campus.
Policy makers scramble to fix the pipeline
State leaders are not blind to the literacy crisis that now shows up in freshman seminars. Education advocates note that while early reading scores have ticked up in some places, older students are still struggling to handle the complex texts they need in high school and beyond. One policy group argues that Adolescent literacy needs just as much attention as phonics in kindergarten if students are going to thrive in high school and college. Another forecast notes that Forecast ’26 expects Lawmakers to keep debating how to fund programs that actually leave students ready for college and career.
Higher ed itself is also being redesigned around who is showing up. Analysts point out that With the number of 18‑year‑olds peaking in 2025, 2026 marks the start of a 15‑year slide in first‑time undergraduates, which will push colleges to compete harder and, ideally, raise the bar on quality. One prediction argues that Standardized tests will be required only for entry to four‑year degrees, while a new three‑year option will emerge to boost completion and create a two‑tier bachelor model. Another forecast says As the demographic cliff deepens, colleges will lean more on a New Majority of adult, working, part‑time, and returning students, backed by intrusive advising and proactive coaching.
The $100K question: is the degree still worth it?
All of this would be worrying enough if college were cheap. It is not. Families now routinely see four‑year price tags that climb into six figures, and even experts who work in finance say some students should pause before signing on. One analysis notes that Planning for the future now means weighing interest, academic readiness, and realistic earnings before committing to a school. Another report puts it bluntly: More US students are arriving at college unprepared to read, and Experts say it is time to rethink a $100K degree.
Public opinion has already moved. A WSJ News Exclusive reports that a majority of Americans no longer believe a college degree is worth the cost, according to a new Wall Street Journ poll. Another commentary on the American system says the decline of higher education is now a given and that the descent is accelerating, citing a poll showing nearly two‑thirds of respondents doubting the value of a degree, a sharp jump in just five years.
Debt, majors, and the brutal math of ROI
Underneath that skepticism is some very practical math. Commenters in one widely shared discussion argue that They get degrees in jobs that do not pay very well, which is fine, but to get that degree for that job, do not go to a private school that only pays 40K a year. Another voice in the same thread insists that The truth is obviously that what degree you major in is going to decide whether the degree pays off or not, and that Far too many kids do not do that homework. Another commenter adds that They tie their advice to concrete examples, like a son who studied engineering and quickly earned $120k.
Students themselves are picking up on that logic. In one Future View‑style forum, They tie their skepticism to mounting student debt and the idea that tangible job skills are not always gained during time in college. Another national survey notes that There is so much intrinsic value in education, but not everyone needs a college degree and everyone does need some kind of training. That same discussion stresses that student debt is 100% personal choice and that the major is a significant factor in whether the degree fills the mind with useful skills or, as one critic puts it, nonsense.
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