The Charlie Kirk Show

Episode: Debates From the Archive - Charlie on Why College is a Scam Part 2
Date: October 30, 2025
Host: Charlie Kirk

Main Theme

In this episode, Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, challenges the conventional wisdom surrounding higher education in America. The central theme is his argument that college is a “scam” for most students—overpriced, under-delivers, and sends many into unnecessary debt without clear value. Through spirited debates with college students, Kirk unpacks the economic, cultural, and societal consequences of the existing college system and advocates for alternative pathways to success.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. College as a "Scam"

• Kirk’s central argument: College is oversold to young Americans as the only path to success, yet for most, it brings debt, lost time, and little practical value.
• "Half this audience, if you get a job, will get a job that doesn’t require a college degree." (09:40)
• Cites statistics:
  • 50% of college grads take jobs that don’t require a college degree.
  • 41% of people who start college never graduate. (10:11, 15:01)
  • Only 18–20% study fields like engineering, medicine, or law that require a degree. The rest are in “worthless, meaningless” disciplines. (11:48, 15:19)

2. Economic and Job Market Realities

• Kirk contrasts average earnings and job prospects:
  • “Average college graduate is getting a job at $61,000 a year…the average plumber after 18 months, $68,000 a year…the average welder, $72,000.” (04:40)
  • "There are 11 million job openings that don't require a college degree in this country." (04:59, 12:48, 19:10)
  • Technical schools, trades, and direct entry into the workforce are presented as practical, lucrative alternatives.

3. Mismatch in Education and Workforce Needs

• Charlies criticizes general education requirements:
  • “You are being scammed against your will to take classes that make you go further into debt.” (02:48)
  • “They are forcing them to take classes that make them poorer, that take up their time in order to get the credential. That is an institutional scam.” (16:31)

4. College and Personal Development

• Kirk questions the idea that college inherently instills virtue or discipline:
  • “Employers more and more not wanting to hire college graduates…because they're super entitled…” (01:43)
  • Argues that personal growth, hard work, and networking can be developed outside the college environment.

5. Government Subsidies and the Cost of College

• Kirk takes issue with taxpayer-funded education:
  • “So I'm paying for your college is what you're saying. My taxes are paying for your college." (07:06)
  • Advocates for colleges to be wholly funded by tuition and private donors, not by federal or state dollars. (21:50–23:00)

6. The Cultural Impact of College

• Repeatedly asserts that college leads to “a lower view of America,” radical politics, and progressive indoctrination. (01:26, 10:18)
• Questions if students are really learning about the heritage and values of Western Civilization versus being fed postmodern ideology.

7. The True Value of a Degree

• Suggests many employers value real-world skills and attitude over a credential:
  • “Employers less and less likely actually want to hire kids from college because they work the least, they're the most entitled…” (25:25)
• Notes that after a few years, nobody in the workforce cares where you went to college. (25:53)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On College Being a Scam

• “College is a scam, everybody. You gotta stop sending your kids to college.” — Charlie Kirk (00:14)
• “Any business that has a 50% rate of a customer being scammed will be shut down by the federal government for disenfranchising their customers. You went to Chili’s, like, hey, 50% chance that our fries are going to give you food poisoning.” — Charlie Kirk (09:40)

Economic Comparisons

• “Do you know the average college graduate now...is getting a job at $61,000 a year? The average plumber after 18 months, $68,000 a year. The average welder, $72,000 a year.” — Charlie Kirk (04:40)
• “A manager of a Walmart pays minimum $250,000 a year, upwards of $400,000 a year…They don’t require a college degree.” — Charlie Kirk (12:24, 29:27)

Student Subsidies and Accountability

• “So I'm paying for your college is what you're saying. My taxes are paying for your college.” — Charlie Kirk (07:06)
• “You should have skin in the game. You should and you don't. Right now you are doing a freeloading thing. Of course you should be defensive of college.” — Charlie Kirk (07:39)

On Broader Cultural Shifts

• “The majority of kids that go to college and they graduate have a lower view of America than when they entered. Do you think that's a troubling thing?” — Charlie Kirk (01:26)
• “Young people are the most depressed, they're the most anxious, the most alcohol addicted, drug addicted, least married, most angry generation in American history.” — Charlie Kirk (24:05)

On the True Purpose of College

• “College really should be closer to what Hillsdale College is, which is about wisdom, beauty, truth, goodness, not just about job preparedness, but that’s…we’ve lost that completely.” — Charlie Kirk (20:59)

On Diversity and Required Courses

• “Yeah, you have to take a diversity class. That sounds like a scam. Well, they are robbing you to take a diversity class.” — Charlie Kirk (17:48)

Exchange on COVID Vaccine

• [Contentious segment refuting mainstream claims about the COVID vaccine, ending with:]
  • “I hope you don’t die suddenly, man. Thank you so much. Yes.” — Charlie Kirk (09:15)

Memorable Student Challenge

• When asked “What is your definition of a woman?” Kirk replies:
  • “A woman is an adult female with XX chromosomes.” — Charlie Kirk (28:31)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:14 — Opening statement: Kirk lays out his worldview and calls college a scam.
• 01:09–02:20 — Begins debate with a student disagreeing on the necessity/value of college.
• 04:40–05:06 — Economic comparisons between college grads and trades; “11 million” non-degree jobs.
• 06:46–07:17 — Subsidized education and the fairness of taxpayer support.
• 09:40–10:11 — The "Chili's/Food poisoning" analogy; high dropout rates.
• 13:08–13:40 — Kirk reiterates most students will not need their degree for their career.
• 15:01–16:31 — Kirk argues that institutional requirements force students into debt for unnecessary classes.
• 17:48–18:13 — Targeting diversity course mandates as a scam.
• 19:10–20:03 — Discussion on job market alternatives to college.
• 21:50–23:00 — Kirk outlines policy suggestion: fully defund colleges, end federal subsidies.
• 24:05–24:18 — Kirk links higher education with negative generational mental health and cultural outcomes.
• 25:25–25:53 — Debate on whether employers ignore degrees after a few years of experience.
• 28:31–28:41 — Defining "woman"; shift to cultural debates.
• 29:13–30:23 — On muscular labor, trades, and quality of life jobs versus college degrees.

Flow of the Episode

• Spirited, often combative back-and-forths between Kirk and various college students highlight divergent perspectives on the value of higher education.
• Kirk repeatedly returns to hard statistics and rhetorical analogies, emphasizing both the economic inefficiency and ideological subcurrents of modern universities.
• Multiple students attempt to push back or nuance his views—especially those in technical or high-value academic programs (like computer science, economics, engineering).
• The episode maintains Kirk’s signature assertive, unapologetically conservative tone, with moments of humor and pointed sarcasm.

Conclusion

This episode of The Charlie Kirk Show is an unflinching critique of the American college system, recasting higher education as a predatory, inefficient, and culturally corrosive institution for the majority of students. Kirk’s arguments blend economic analysis, cultural critique, and policy proposals—calling for a reevaluation of societal priorities, and for young people to consider alternative, often more lucrative, paths.
For listeners questioning the status quo of higher education, this episode is a direct challenge to prevailing narratives and an endorsement of self-reliance, trades, and practical experience over traditional degrees.