While the recent grads of the high school class of 2024 are planning their next moves, a new survey shows that just half of them intend to enroll in a four-year college.
The survey of 1,000 recent public high grads and 1,000 parents, which was conducted by Talker Research on behalf of the education company Learn4Life, shows the traditional high school to university journey is apparently going the way of the flip-phone.
Nearly a quarter of the grads say they intend to start working instead of going to school; 21% say they’re enrolling in a two-year community college program.
Nine percent intend to go to a trade school or obtain a professional certificate; 4% say they’re joining the military.
Seven percent say they’re taking a gap year.
As mentioned, parents also weighed in: 43% say their kids are “adequately prepared for the real world” after leaving high school, something echoed by the students themselves. Twenty-two percent felt “very prepared” to start the process of adulting.
In fact, nearly half wished their high school had taught them real world skills instead of, say, the Defenestration of Prague — the knowledge of which only comes in handy during college Jeopardy! shows or when snarking in news stories about high school.
Survey questions, methodology and results have not been verified or endorsed by ABC News or The Walt Disney Company.