Negotiating the medical billPaying the stated amount in full
5.0%38%
Inaction dominates
Inaction regret 7.6× higher
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A 2023 Dreambound survey of approximately 1,000 US college graduates found that 44% regretted their college major — the most direct available measure of dissatisfaction with a debt-financed degree path. On the inaction side, a 2017 Gallup survey of 3,200 US adults found that 31% of those without a 4-year degree would obtain one if they could make the decision again. The resulting delta (0.13) places this entry in the action_dominates category, meaning people who took on debt for a 4-year degree report higher rates of dissatisfaction than those who chose cheaper alternatives — an unusual pattern in a dataset dominated by inaction regret.
The Federal Reserve’s 2023 Household Economic Decision-Making survey corroborates the action-side picture: 35% of bachelor’s-degree holders would choose a different field of study, and 63% of student loan borrowers report difficulty managing their payments. A Fortune survey of Gen Z adults found that one in four wished they had not gone to college or had chosen a more financially rewarding field. These figures together suggest that the main driver of action-side regret is not the degree itself but the mismatch between major choice, debt load, and labor-market outcomes — a structural problem that intensified as tuition costs rose faster than starting salaries in many fields between 2000 and 2020.
The inaction-side 31% should be read carefully. Gallup’s figure covers all non-4-year-degree adults, including people who chose trade or vocational paths deliberately and are satisfied with them, people who lacked access due to cost or location, and people who entered the military or workforce directly. The share who specifically chose a cheaper alternative and regret not having obtained a 4-year credential is likely a subset of that 31%. The wage premium for a 4-year degree over vocational qualifications varies substantially by field: licensed trades (electricians, HVAC technicians, plumbers) show compressed wage gaps relative to many humanities or social science degrees, while technology, healthcare, and finance fields show larger premiums. The action_dominates pattern is robust across independent surveys but narrows considerably when the comparison is restricted to high-return vocational credentials against high-cost, low-return degree programs.
Sources: action
Claim ledger
Every number below is what each source reported, with the verbatim quote we relied on and how we arrived at our figure. Click any link to verify directly.
[1]Dreambound — College Major Regret Survey↗ 1 other entry
Primary study
44% of 4-year degree holders regret their college major
Excerpt
“"44 percent of adults with a four-year college degree reported regretting their choice of college major. Among those with regrets, the most common reasons were that the major did not lead to the expected career opportunities and that the degree did not justify the financial cost."
”
Source data from
2023-01-01
Accessed
2026-05-13
Calculation
Dreambound 2023 survey of approximately 1,000 US degree holders. The 44% figure measures major-selection regret among people who completed a 4-year degree, which is used as the best available proxy for regret about the debt-laden degree path. A person can regret their major while still valuing the degree credential, so this figure likely overstates regret about taking the debt itself; however, it is the most direct available measure of dissatisfaction with the 4-year-degree outcome.
[2]Federal Reserve — Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2022 — Higher Education and Student Loans
Government report
35% of college graduates would pick a different major; 63% of student loan borrowers report difficulty managing their loan payments
Excerpt
“"35 percent of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher said they would choose a different field of study if they could redo their education. Among adults with outstanding student loan balances, 63 percent reported difficulty with their student loan payments, including 20 percent who said payments were very difficult to manage."
”
Source data from
2023-05-01
Accessed
2026-05-13
Calculation
Federal Reserve SHED 2023 data. The 35% major-change figure corroborates the Dreambound survey's direction. The 63% loan- difficulty figure captures financial regret about the debt itself rather than the degree outcome, and is used as a corroborating source for the action-side regret picture.
[3]Fortune — Gen Z has regrets: 1 in 4 say they wish they hadn't gone to college or would've picked a higher-paying industry
Reference source
1 in 4 Gen Z adults wish they had not gone to college or had chosen a higher-paying field (ResumeGenius survey of 1,000 Gen Z workers, 2025)
Excerpt
“"One in four Gen Z adults say they regret going to college or wish they had chosen a higher-paying field like tech, finance, engineering, or health care. Financial concerns -- specifically the cost of tuition relative to early-career earnings -- were the most commonly cited reasons for regret. A Tallo survey of more than 2,000 adults aged 18-30 found 62% are not in the career they intended to pursue."
”
Source data from
2025-07-20
Accessed
2026-05-14
Calculation
Fortune reporting on Gen Z college regret (July 2025), citing ResumeGenius survey of 1,000 full-time Gen Z workers. The original URL (fortune.com/education/articles/gen-z-college-regret/) returned HTTP 404; updated to the live canonical URL. Source date corrected from 2024 to 2025. The 1-in-4 figure (25%) captures the narrower subset who regret the college-or-not decision, not just the major choice. Used as context for the broader action-side regret pattern; the 44% major-regret figure from Dreambound is used as the primary regret rate.
Sources: inaction
Claim ledger
Every number below is what each source reported, with the verbatim quote we relied on and how we arrived at our figure. Click any link to verify directly.
[1]Gallup — Half of U.S. Adults Would Change at Least One Education Decision↗ 1 other entry
Primary study
Among US adults without a 4-year degree, 31% said they would change their highest level of education if they could redo it, primarily by obtaining a 4-year degree
Excerpt
“"Among Americans without a four-year college degree, 31 percent said they would change the highest level of education they received if they could make the decision over again. The most common change these adults would make is to obtain a four-year college degree. Overall, half of all U.S. adults say they would change at least one education decision if they could redo it."
”
Source data from
2017-08-01
Accessed
2026-05-13
Calculation
Gallup survey of approximately 3,200 US adults. The 31% figure is a direct "would you change your education level?" question applied to the population of non-4-year-degree holders, which is the inaction-side population for this decision. This is the cleanest available proxy for inaction regret on this question. The survey covers all non-degree adults including those who chose vocational training, community college, or no post-secondary education.
Caveats
The action-side 44% measures major-selection regret among degree holders, not regret about taking on debt specifically; a person who regrets their major may still believe the degree and its associated debt were worthwhile investments. The Federal Reserve's 35% "would choose a different major" figure and the Fortune/Gen Z 25% "wish I hadn't gone to college" figure both corroborate the directional finding but vary in how they frame the question. The Gallup inaction-side 31% covers all non-4-year-degree adults including those who chose vocational routes for non-financial reasons (military service, early family formation) and those who faced access barriers; it likely understates regret among people who deliberately chose cheaper alternatives and later faced credential-based hiring barriers. The wage premium for a 4-year degree over vocational qualifications is highly field-dependent: trades with licensed certifications (electricians, plumbers, HVAC technicians) show smaller wage gaps than roles requiring professional degrees. Both sides of this entry are distinct from the existing go-to-college-vs-skip entry, which covers the binary attend-vs-not decision; this entry focuses on the path choice (high-debt 4-year degree vs. community college, trade school, or employer apprenticeship) among people who pursued some form of post-secondary education.
