59% of Republicans Think College Is a Negative

A new Pew Research Center survey finds that only 50% of American adults think colleges and universities are having a positive effect on the way things are going in the country these days, while 38% say they are having a negative impact – up from 26% in 2012.

“The increase in negative views has come almost entirely from Republicans and independents who lean Republican. From 2015 to 2019, the share saying colleges have a negative effect on the country went from 37% to 59% among this group. Over that same period, the views of Democrats and independents who lean Democratic have remained largely stable and overwhelmingly positive.”