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1,517 Americans ages 18 and older were interviewed to better understand their perceptions of education after high school, including oversamples of Black, Latinx, and Asian Americans, and student loan borrowers. It provides important trend data to judge how attitudes about the value of education after high school, how it is funded, and how it should be held accountable have changed over the past six years, particularly since the [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19 pandemic.

Key findings from this year include: Americans continue to believe in the value of pursuing educational opportunities after high school; Education after high school continues to offer a good return on investment; Various higher education sectors contribute to a strong American workforce; Online education quality is seen as similar to in-person education, but it should cost less; Americans are split on whether someone can get a high-quality education after high school that is also affordable; Government must spend more money on higher education to make it affordable; Public colleges and universities are worth the investment; and Americans continue to strongly support holding colleges and universities accountable.

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New America's Varying Degrees 2021 survey interviewed 2,620 Americans ages 18 and older to better understand their perceptions of education after high school, including oversamples of Black, Latinx, Asian Americans, current undergraduate students, and student loan borrowers. It provides important trend data to judge how attitudes about the value of education after high school, how it's funded, and how it should be held accountable have changed over the past five years, particularly since the [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19 pandemic. This year we pay particular attention to the pivot to online education and the response of colleges and universities during the COVID-19 crisis. We also focus on President Biden's education after high school policy priorities.

Our key findings this year include: Education after high school continues to offer a good return on investment and prepares a strong American workforce; The quality of online education, however, is questionable compared to in-person instruction and should be less expensive; Americans are mixed about whether students have affordable access to education after high school; Americans want colleges to be transparent about their outcomes, and they want them to be held accountable for taxpayer investment; Americans believe President Biden and Congress should prioritize free community college when it comes to higher education policy; A majority of Americans think that those colleges and universities that decided to hold in-person classes fall 2020 made the right decision; Americans do not believe standardized test scores should figure prominently in admissions decisions; and Americans widely support discharging student loan debt for those students who attended schools that misrepresented their programs or outcomes.

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Americans' opinions about higher education are complex. Understanding this complexity is important for learning how to talk about the value of educational pathways after high school and crafting thoughtful policy solutions to meet the needs of today's students. This is the reason we engage Americans every year, asking questions other surveys do not delve into, and digging deep to reveal the sentiments and nuance of people's thoughts about higher education, its value, who should fund it, and what the government's role should be.

This report marks the third year of New America's Varying Degrees survey, and represents a complete overhaul. Given the great strides online survey research has made, we transitioned to an online/telephone design using AmeriSpeak, a representative panel developed by NORC at the University of Chicago. AmeriSpeak allows us to capture better representation of harder-to-reach populations such as young adults, current students enrolled in higher education programs, and oversamples of African American, Latinx, and Asian American populations.

As in previous years, the survey shows unifying themes, as well as differences among various demographics when it comes to questions about the value of and funding for education opportunities after high school. Since the United States is gearing up for a presidential election, special attention is paid to the opinions of Republicans, Democrats, and independents.

Our top findings this year include: Americans think that well-paying jobs may not require education after high school, but they believe that education after high school creates better opportunities; Americans want change in higher education; Only half of Americans think education after high school Is affordable and they believe government funding should be increased; Americans think we need to hold colleges and universities accountable; Americans want admissions at elite colleges and universities to change; Americans value various educational pathways after high school; Americans believe public colleges and universities are worth the cost; Americans feel positively about their local colleges and universities; and Voters slightly support free college in the 2020 election.

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As states around the country begin to grapple with the economic effects of [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19, discussions about value, funding, and accountability in higher education will be front and center. The Varying Degrees Survey, which seeks to understand how Americans view higher education, was fielded in February 11-24, 2020, before the full force of the pandemic hit the U.S. What was learned will provide an important baseline to help measure how perceptions change over the course of this public health and economic crisis, while informing policy decisions in a post-pandemic world.

Our top findings this year include: Americans believe that education beyond high school creates more opportunities, is worth the investment, and promotes social mobility - about four in five Americans think people who pursue further education after high school will have more job opportunities than those who do not; While Americans believe in the value proposition of education beyond high school, they also believe higher education needs to change - only one-third of Americans believe higher education is fine the way it is; and The vast majority of Americans (90 per cent) believe that publicly available data on low graduation rates, high dropout rates, low earnings, and high student loan default rates are important indicators of quality.

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After years of economic growth following the Great Recession, people still feel anxious about the economy and see higher education as essential for improving personal financial circumstances. While New America's second annual survey about perceptions on higher education shows that Americans believe pursuing education beyond high school is important for career growth and economic security, they still feel that higher education is not fine the way it is, and that government should do more to make it affordable.

New America surveyed 1,600 Americans ages 18 and older to better understand their perceptions of higher education, economic mobility, and government funding. Like last year, the survey shows unifying themes, as well as differences across various demographics when it comes to the value of education beyond high school in today's economy and the government's role in funding this education. We pay particular attention to the similarities and differences of opinion among Republicans, Democrats, and Independents in this election year.

Our top findings include: Americans believe well-paying jobs require education after high school; Americans believe education after high school creates opportunities; Americans want change in higher education; Americans believe public colleges and universities are worth the cost but feel mixed about private and for-profit colleges and universities; Regardless of demographics, Americans like their local colleges and universities; Americans support workforce-based programs such as apprenticeship; and Americans believe higher education is a public benefit and that the government should do more to make it affordable.

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