Report · Money

An undergraduate degree still matters in the job market

Reading

In a Verasight survey of 1,000 U.S. adults conducted in December 2025, 62% of Americans said an undergraduate degree is important in today's job market. Including 43% who said somewhat important and 20% who said extremely important.

About one in seven said it is unimportant (15%), with 10% who said somewhat unimportant and 5% who said very unimportant. Another 23% said it is neither important nor unimportant.

Topline

response scale

Topline scale

62% of Americans say an undergraduate degree is important in today's job market.

How important is an undergraduate degree in the job market today?

  • Somewhat important 42.7%
  • Not important or unimportant 23.1%
  • Extremely important 19.7%
  • Somewhat unimportant 9.7%
  • Very unimportant 4.8%

2025 · base n 1,000 · +/- 3.2%

soc_pol

View source

Methodology

Full methodology
Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting
Field dates
2025-12-03 → 2025-12-08
Base (unweighted)
1,000
Margin of error
+/- 3.2%
Module
soc_pol

Source

  • 01
    An undergraduate degree still matters in the job marketreports.verasight.io/reports/verasight-human-llm-comparison-survey-2025-172

Citation

Verasight Human/LLM Comparison Survey #2025-172, fielded December 3-8, 2025, N=1,000 US adults age 18+, +/- 3.2%.

https://reports.verasight.io/reports/verasight-human-llm-comparison-survey-2025-172#how-important-is-an-undergraduate-degree-in-the-job-market-today

Verasight survey methodology

How Verasight conducts surveys.

This page describes the Verasight general survey contract, separate from how the Data Library packages it. Each wave's specific field dates, sample sizes, and module breakdown are listed in that wave's report.

Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting.
Population
US adults age 18+.
Sample design
Surveys are run as omnibus or single-topic waves. Omnibus waves are split into modules with their own respondent set, typically around one thousand respondents per module.
Field window
Each wave specifies its own field dates. Most omnibus waves field across roughly two weeks.
Weighting
Per-module weighting to CPS targets including age, race and ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, and metropolitan status.
Partisanship benchmark
Pew Research Center's NPORS benchmarking surveys, three-year running average.
Vote benchmark
2024 presidential vote population benchmarks.
Margin of error
Typically about plus or minus 3.4 to 3.6 percent per module at standard module sizes. Question-level MoE is recomputed when a base shrinks materially below the module baseline.
Reporting
Every wave is published as a standalone report at verasight.io/reports with full instrument and methodology.
Transparency
AAPOR transparency standards.

Wave-specific methodology, full weighting variable lists, and verbatim instrument text live in each report at verasight.io/reports.