Traditionally a college liberal arts education was for the wealthier or most intelligent young men. These men were then expected to form the leadership and intellectual class for their generation.
For the last two generations we have told kids that college is required prep for many/most jobs. No longer is college the top crust of society, but your average kid is expected to get a college education. The need to prepare for and attend college is drilled into every kid from grade school through high school.
We only need just so many leaders and intellectuals. A lot of kids are given crap degrees they are unable to use- and that includes any degree with the word “studies” in the title. Most of these people can’t even make good use of a solid classical degree like English, or Philosophy, or Economics. They simply lack the intellectual strengths or the societal connections to really use that knowledge. Frankly, many of those mid-wits are ill-equipped for a more hardcore science class as well.