Episode: 603

Episode Title: YouTube University

Almost half of young people today see YouTube as a valuable place to learn new skills. Should colleges be worried? Let’s talk about it, next on The Perna Syndicate.

Ep 603 show:

You’re now in The Perna Syndicate—welcome! The Gates Foundation recently set out to discover why more and more young people are bypassing college in their postsecondary plans. They also wanted to know what young people are choosing instead—and one of the answers may surprise you.

Turns out that YouTube offers a lot more than cat videos these days, and almost half of the survey respondents indicated that they have taken, or are taking, classes on YouTube’s platform. That’s a really significant number. 

Of course, YouTube isn’t the only place to learn new skills. Roughly a quarter of the respondents have taken, or are taking, courses to receive a license or a verified certificate.

In future, approximately four in ten participants intend to pursue a licensure, certification, or 2-year associate’s degree. 27% say they plan to attend a trade or vocational school, while another 17% want to complete a bootcamp program.

These are revealing numbers, and they demonstrate just how savvy young people are becoming about their postsecondary choices. They ask “why?” about everything else, so it was only a matter of time before they started questioning the value of college. 

Some people will never attend college, and that’s okay. Some will try it and find it’s not a fit. Others may go and find it’s a great investment in their future. In the meantime, there’s always YouTube University while they figure it out.

Tomorrow: How do people rank the value of a 4-year degree compared to other educational options like on-the-job learning? We’ll talk about that and more on the next episode of The Perna Syndicate. See you then!