Research
What Students Value in College
What Students Value in College presents findings from a national survey examining students’ motivations for attending college, the educational experiences they value most, and how those experiences relate to student well-being. The survey, conducted in January 2026 by LearningWell Coalition, in partnership with AAC&U and Morning Consult, included responses from 872 undergraduate students enrolled at two- and four-year institutions.
The findings challenge narrow assumptions about why students pursue higher education and what contributes most to their success. While career preparation remains important, students also place high value on personal growth, purpose, mentorship, meaningful relationships, and opportunities to apply learning in real-world settings.
Key Findings
While 36.5 percent of students identify getting good jobs and advancing their careers as their primary motivations for attending college, a similar share cite intellectual and personal growth, identity formation, and contributing to their communities as central motivations.
Students from lower-income households and first-generation backgrounds are more likely to prioritize personal growth and identity development and less likely to view career preparation as their primary motivation for attending college.
More than half of students report having a faculty or staff mentor, and 76 percent say mentorship was “very” or “extremely” valuable. The findings reinforce the importance of meaningful relationships, guidance, and connection in how students define the value of college.
Internships, service-learning, employment experiences, mentorship, and other forms of applied and high-impact learning were among the educational experiences students associated with the greatest gains in well-being and personal growth. Yet many students report limited access to these opportunities, pointing to a continued gap between the experiences students value most and those they are most likely to encounter.
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What Students Value in College explores how students define the value of higher education and highlights the educational experiences most strongly associated with student well-being, growth, and long-term success.