Are College Degrees are a Becoming Worthless?

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Earn Your Leisure

Episode: Are College Degrees Becoming Worthless?
Hosts: Rashad Bilal & Troy Millings (and guest analysts)
Release Date: March 22, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Rashad Bilal and Troy Millings tackle the seismic changes happening in the job market, particularly questioning whether the traditional college degree still holds financial and professional value in the face of artificial intelligence (AI) and widespread job disruption. The hosts explore rising unemployment, the impact of AI on white-collar and skilled labor jobs, and the shifting value of higher education. They discuss the need for new skills, alternatives to traditional career paths, and what these trends mean for individuals and the broader economy.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Current Job Market Crisis

• 104 Million Out of the Workforce:
  "It's 104 million people that are not even looking for work or not in the American job system... nearly a third who have given up on the job market all together. And I think it's definitely a sign of the times."
  — Rashad (03:04)
• Forced Into Entrepreneurship:
  Many, especially African Americans, are being "pushed out of corporate and forced into entrepreneurship purely by necessity, not by choice."
  — Rashad (03:04)
• Rising Graduate Unemployment:
  Tech leaders predict up to 30% of college graduates may not secure jobs after graduation, up from 6-7%. Layoffs at major companies are accelerating this trend.
  — Co-host (03:44)

The Impact of AI and Automation

• AI’s Disruptive Effects:
  • "The most important thing I could say is yes, we understand the importance of AI and the disruption it's going to cause, but I don't think we're paying attention to how we need to execute and using it, becoming educated by it."
    — Co-host (03:44)
  • "AI is going to really force everybody to become an entrepreneur in some way or another."
    — Co-host (05:11)

The Increasingly Unstable Value of College Degrees

• No Guaranteed Return:
  • "I don't think...there's going to be a world where you can actually just pay for education and then after you graduate, then get a job...is that education worth it? If the education does not guarantee or is not a pathway for success?"
    — Co-host (05:42)
• Financial Imbalance:
  • "To pay $400 [thousand] for undergrad...and then to make what, 60 grand and have all the debt to pay. So there definitely needs to be a restructuring."
    — Rashad (13:13)

The Future: Skills, Trades, and New Realities

• Are Plumbers the ‘New Tech Millionaires’?
  • Debate on whether skilled trades like plumbing will become the new high-income jobs.
    • "I've seen a guy from...some tech company and he said that plumbers are going to start making LeBron James money."
      — Co-host (06:55)
    • "The whole logic behind that doesn't make any sense...We always needed plumbers."
      — Co-host (07:31)
    • "Nobody's going to pay a plumber more than it costs to build a home. If that's the case, I won't even have a home."
      — Co-host (09:31)
• Skills + AI Synergy:
  • "We have to figure out what a skill is. Not so much of what we should be studying to now figure out if we can get a career in that path. What is the skill that we have? How do we converge that skill with artificial intelligence to get ahead?"
    — Co-host (07:07)
• Economic Impact on Education Industry:
  • "When people really start to have second thoughts about education and spending so much money on education, that's a...billion dollar industry. So when you no longer see value in it...that's an economic effect also."
    — Co-host (11:21)

Systemic Issues: Debt and Policy

• Student Loans & Bankruptcy:
  • "You can't write off those loans or file bankruptcy on them. That's the part that sucks."
    — Rashad (13:13)
• Education Industry at Risk:
  • "The education system...is in great danger right now. And I feel like that's something that...is going to be a crisis."
    — Co-host (11:21)
  • "Within the next 10 years, we're going to see a drastic change in how people look, how they treat, how they feel about going to school and the value of it."
    — Co-host (12:40)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On AI Filtering Out Workers:
  "Even if you're trying to get a job, it's just hard to even get through the AI filters through your resume. So it is working successfully."
  — Rashad (10:16)
• On Executive Lip Service:
  "If I destroy an industry with my software I didn't have to give you a way to make money. So I'm not looked at as the villain. This is a prime example of an executive telling you one thing and doing another."
  — Rashad (10:16)
• On Why Students May No Longer Value College:
  "We're coming from a generation where it was still the thing, like we'll get a good degree. I'm starting to see...young people that we're around. It's like maybe it's not even viable."
  — Co-host (12:40)

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Important Timestamps

• [03:04] Rashad outlines job market statistics and systemic workforce exit
• [03:44] Co-host describes bleak job prospects for new college graduates amid AI disruption
• [05:11] Shift towards forced entrepreneurship as AI advances
• [05:42] Debate on whether education still guarantees job placement or return on investment
• [07:04 – 09:31] Extended discussion on skilled trades’ future earnings and the flawed logic behind “plumbers as millionaires”
• [10:16] Rashad critiques tech executives’ talking points and AI-driven job loss
• [11:21] Examination of the education sector's economic vulnerability
• [12:40] Reflection on generational perceptions of college value and prediction of major change

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Final Thoughts

The episode provides a candid, data-driven critique of the unpredictable American job market, the rapidly declining return on investment in college education, and the pervasive effects of AI on traditional and skilled professions. Rashad, Troy, and their guest analysts call for rethinking both education and employment strategies, warning of systemic consequences if current trends continue.

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Transcript

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[Rashad]

It's 104 million people that are not even looking for work or not in the American job system. So talk about a scary fact. And even for us as African Americans, a lot of us have been pushed out of corporate and forced into entrepreneurship purely by necessity, not by choice. So there's a lot of conversation about how strong the economy is. I know the indexes are only down 2 to 4% depending on which one you're looking at, but that's a large swath of America, nearly a third who have given up on the job market all together. And I think it's definitely a sign of the times.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Yeah, I'm with you. It was interesting. I was watching CEO of ServiceNow McDermott talking about the workforce going into the next 5 to 10 years and he thinks college graduates. It was pretty alarming. He said he thinks that 30 of college graduates won't have a job post graduation. I think the, the average right now is like 6 to 7%. He says he's going to 30. We watched Meta have layoffs early last week and so you're seeing that cycle. And the most important thing I could say is yes, we understand the importance of AI and the disruption is going to cause, but I don't think we're paying attention to how we need to execute and using it, becoming educated by it. That's why I think Thursday's episode is one of the most important things we've ever done because it gives you the foundational layers of how we need to look at this going forward so we can take advantage of it, participate in it and make sure we don't get left behind. Yeah, but it's, it's, it's happening. It's happening.

[Rashad]

Rashad, to your point, because you made me go research this, like, what do we do? Because honestly, if kids are not able to get job placement after the solution, okay, one alternative is to invest. But if you don't have any capital, you can't even invest or you can't buy the Pro version of Claude or Open AI is, are there any solutions for those who may feel like that Status too doom and gloom?

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Unfortunately not. I mean, once again, going back to the episode that we coming out with on Thursday when she was talking about how AI is going to really force everybody to become an entrepreneur in some way or another. And you know, just looking at the landscape, I see AI really, really, really taking over in a variety of different ways. So can't beat them, join them. I don't necessarily think that we're going to go back to a world where, you know, it's going to be how it once was.

[Rashad]

No, it's over with.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

It's all. It's only going to get worse from here as far as like that level of thinking when it comes to jobs. But you know, there's opportunities in, in other areas, freelance work. And I think you're gonna have to be a little bit more creative. But I don't think that is going to be a world where you can actually just pay for education and then after you graduate, then get a job and really questions if education has the same value, especially from a financial standpoint. If you want to spend a lot of money on education, is that education worth it? If the education does not guarantee or is not a pathway for success?

Yeah, that's part of the conversation. The pathway will definitely be changed. I was reading the article, it might have been in the Journal, could have been in maybe Yahoo Finance about where they think technicians, plumbers. How will their salaries increase over the next five to 10 years? Will they be now replacing. Will they be the highest paid professions? Because those are skills that are going to be needed. I don't know if they're.

Yeah, they just said. They just say anything.

Yeah, I don't think, I don't think

I've seen a dude, I seen, I seen a guy from what, what tech company? He was some tech company and he said that plumbers are going to start making LeBron James money.

[Rashad]

No, let me, let me just finish

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

before you go there because I don't think it's true. But it does speak to a shift on that. That new path was like, what is it? I think it is skill based. Right. Like we have to figure out what a skill is. Not so much of what we should be studying to now figure out if we can get a career in that path. What is the skill that we have? How do we converge that skill with artificial intelligence to get ahead?

Yeah, but the whole logic behind that doesn't make any sense because we always needed plumbers. It's never like we didn't need plumbers. And it's not like we're building 50 million new homes all of a sudden. So it's like the idea of like plumbers are going to start making $25 million a year. I just don't understand it. Like, we always needed plumbers. We have plumbers. We do have a shortage of plumbers, but it's not like every single plumber in America is going to die tomorrow and then there's going to be 10 plumbers. Well then, yeah, their value would be $25 million a year if there was only 10 plumbers that can actually do the craft. But like, what is going to change in society? Because artificial intelligence is not threatening plumbers right now. So why would a plumber's value just automatically go up to $25 million a year? I just don't understand the logic.

[Rashad]

The thought is if AI takes over, there'll be a limited supply of jobs, therefore the value of those will go up. But to your point, every CEO who I ever heard say that they never tell their kids, go be a pump plumber and they never resign. A CEO of a tech company.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Right? Yeah, I, I think that that was part of the piece. It was like, we're going to see careers be completely disrupted.

Right.

Like the example they use was like lawyers, going forward, what would that look like? Would that be a high paying job? Right. If you think about it like the way that Claude is moving, the way that OpenAI is moving. Yeah. We might see disruption in, in the law practices. From the medical standpoint, our doctor is going to be the highest forming page. We don't know.

Right.

Like right now those are the highest paying jobs. But you add intelligence into that, you add efficiency into that. Right now malpractice is out. It changes things. And so they're saying, if those aren't the highest paying jobs, what now becomes those? And they're thinking like skills technicians, electricians, things like that. Yes, you can make great money doing that now as an entrepreneur. They'll see that going up and increasing over time.

And it's a little service, but it's not even sustainable. Like as far as nobody's going to play a plumber more than it costs to build a home. If that's the case, I won't even have a home. Like if I have to pay a plumber $500,000 to, to plumb my house because their value has just gone up exponentially. Well, what does that do to real estate prices? Because one or two things happen. Either you just can't afford to buy a home anymore or real Estate now has to increase with debt. So now the price of a million dollar home is now worth $10 million because the plumbing alone is worth $500,000. I just don't, I just don't understand. It just, it's one of these things that just sounds good on paper. But when you say a plumber is going to start making LeBron James money.

Yes, that's, that's ridiculous.

[Rashad]

It's, it's lip service because if I destroy an industry with my software I didn't have to give you a way to make money. So I'm not looked at as the villain. And this is a prime example of an executive telling you one thing and doing another. They know that the pay rate is not going to increase dramatically. The entire purpose of artificial intelligence is to lay off the majority of the workforce. And like I said, It's 104 million people outside of that right now. And even if you're trying to get a job, it's just hard to even get through the AI filters through your resume. So it is working successfully. And a lot of times they're saying this too to get funding because they don't want their venture capital company to or private equity company to be on the hook for funding them for then also erasing the job market and causing catastrophe there. Also The Canadian economy lost 84000 jobs in February. 6.7% drop 32% chance of a recession in Canada. We are in a crisis and everyone acting like it's okay and it's not.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

But what I will say is that the education system is going to, is, is in great danger right now. And I feel like that's something that you know is going to be a crisis. When you look at education is a big business within itself and that's, that's something that a lot of people benefit from. So now when people really start to, to have second thoughts about education and spending so much money on education, that's a, that's an economic effect as well from people that are reliant on education. Not just from teachers but administrators, the government, student loan programs, a variety of different things. This is a billion dollar industry. So when you no longer see value in it the same way that you once saw value in it and how it's been positioned over the last 50 years is that it's kind of like a mandatory thing if you want to excel and get to the middle class or above is that you have to go to colle now when that becomes relatively optional and people aren't seeing the value in that anymore. Well, that's an economic effect also.

Yeah. And you, you take into it, you start thinking about student loan. Right. Who's. Who are you borrowing from?

Right.

Exactly. Now you start to cut back on that.

That's less revenue.

Exactly.

[Rashad]

Yeah.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

That becomes a huge problem. Yeah. So education reform, I mean, it's long overdue, but I feel like we're at the forefront and in our lifetime, within the next 10 years, we're going to see a drastic change in how people look, how they treat, how they feel about going to school and the value of it. I mean, this, we're coming from a generation where it was still the thing, like we'll get a good degree. I'm starting to see like the young people that we're around. It's like maybe it's not even viable. Maybe I'll go.

[Rashad]

The reward scenario or ratio isn't even.

[Co-host or Guest Analyst]

Why would I go? Right.

[Rashad]

I mean, just looking at some of the colleges in New York, you're looking at 110 per year. That's crazy. Like to pay 400 for undergrad, 350 for undergrad, and then to make what, 60 grand and have all the debt to pay. So there definitely needs to be a restructuring. But the sad part is that you can't write off those loans or five, bankruptcy on them. That's the part that sucks.

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[Rashad]

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