I know many people who had successful careers without college. For example, several people in my family had lifelong careers in the computer field, after they learned to code in trade schools, and their knowledge and experience is still in demand today.
But, nowadays, young Americans are facing a bleak job market. Too many jobs have gone overseas, and too many positions here are filled with foreign workers. So, they all go to college with the hope of finding higher paying work.
One of the main reasons I voted for Trump was for more jobs to come back for U.S. citizens.
If those students were bright, curious and self-directed, they still wouldn’t need degrees for many positions.
But we have a sadly ignorant, shiftless, and not very intelligent generation upon us. Four years of “training” might make them marginally more employable.