College Major Regret Survey

Used in 2 entries

For each citing entry, the verbatim excerpt and Likelier's calculation notes (how the source's number was converted to the lifetime-probability framing) are shown below. Click through to read the full claim ledger.

1. [1] Drop out vs. finish degree Decision · inaction side

   Statistic

   44% of degree holders regret their college major

   “"44 percent of college degree holders said they regret the major they chose. Among those with regret, the most frequently cited reasons were poor alignment with career opportunities, low earnings relative to debt incurred, and the feeling that the subject matter was less interesting than anticipated. Regret was highest in liberal arts and humanities fields."”

   Calculation notes

   Dreambound 2023 survey of US degree holders. The 44% figure is specifically about major regret among those who completed a degree, making it an upper bound on inaction regret (the Gallup 33% is the lower bound). Major regret and completion regret are related but not equivalent: a student who regrets their major has still completed a credential. We use 33% (Gallup) as the headline inaction-regret rate because it comes from the larger, more methodologically rigorous sample and measures overall education regret rather than the specific major-regret subset.
   

   Source date: 2023-01-01 · Accessed: 2026-05-13

2. [2] Student debt vs. cheaper path Decision · action side

   Statistic

   44% of 4-year degree holders regret their college major

   “"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."”

   Calculation notes

   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.
   

   Source date: 2023-01-01 · Accessed: 2026-05-13