91% of small business owners say colleges are giving students 'unrealistic expectations' for life after graduation: Survey
91% of small business owners are concerned that "educational institutions are fostering unrealistic expectations among students regarding post-graduation and professional life."
An alarming number of small business owners are concerned that American colleges and universities are creating far-fetched expectations for graduates as they transition into the workforce, according to a new survey.
The Freedom Economy Index, a project of Red Balloon and PublicSquare, surveyed over 70,000 small business owners and found that 91% of respondents are concerned that “educational institutions are fostering unrealistic expectations among students regarding post-graduation and professional life.”
Small business owners who responded to the survey reported that ”salary levels,” “amount of work hours required,” and the “difficulty of work to be performed” were among the top three challenges that college graduates face when entering the workforce.
63% of respondents said that college graduates often have “unrealistic expectations on salary levels.” 62% reported that graduates have a hard time adjusting to the hours of work required for the job, and 50% said that graduates “have wrong expectations about the difficulty of work to be performed.”
[RELATED: Businesses are turning away from higher-ed and its push toward ‘equity’]
One small business owner who responded to the survey said that college graduates “expect it to start at the top without having to work.”
”No actual ‘job’ training. They come in with mountains of debt and no experience,” one small business owner said.
”Inability to work independently, constant need for validation, unrealistic expectations,” said a small business owner when responding to the survey.
[RELATED: SURVEY: Small businesses dissatisfied with college-educated job seekers]
”These people come out of college more worried about their DEI score than actually being a functional part of society,” another small business owner said.
Nearly half of those who responded to the survey said they have concerns about the “alignment of diploma subject matter with real-world business needs.”
The survey was conducted from November 30, 2023 to December 5, 2023.
