Americans see a college education as less important now than they once did, according to a new poll from Gallup released Thursday. It's dropped over 15 years.

Students celebrate at the 170th Commencement Ceremony of The City College of New York in 2016. According to a new Gallup Poll, Americans see a college education as less important now than they once did. File Photo by Bryan R. Smith/UPI UPI

Sept. 11 (UPI) -- Americans see a college education as less important now than they once did, according to a new poll from Gallup released Thursday.

The decline has happened over the past 15 years, with about a third, 35%, see it as "very important"; 40% see it as "fairly important"; with 24% saying it's "not too important."

In 2019, just over half of U.S. adults, 53%, said it was very important, but that was already lower than the 70% found in 2013 and 75% in 2010. The number of those viewing college as not too important has more than doubled since 2019 and compares with just 4% in 2010.

All major subgroups of Americans expressed less support for higher education today than they did 12 years ago.

The initial decline in the percentage rating college as very important was steeper among 18- to 34-year-olds than among older adults, Gallup said. But since then, the rates among older adults have plunged, so that now only about a third of all age groups say a college education is very important.

Traditionally, women, people of color, college graduates and Democrats were more likely than their counterparts to value higher education, and that hasn't changed. But even among these pro-college groups, less than half now say college is very important.

Republicans are equally likely to rate it as fairly important as not too important, at 39%.

Only 40% of college graduates say college is very important, but few, 12%, dismiss it as not too important, while 46% say it's fairly important.

Non-college graduates, who are just as likely to say college is not too important, 32%, as very important, 31%, with 37% calling it fairly important.

Most Americans still see value in having a college education, rating it at least fairly important. But they are far less likely today than five years ago to consider it vital.

Confidence in higher education has declined much more among Republicans than Democrats over the past decade, with criticism of it for having left-leaning political agendas leading the reasons.

But the declining perception that college is very important has happened equally among both parties.