In 2018, 18 to 21-year-olds, who were part of Generation Z were more likely to be enrolled in college in comparison to Millennials and Generation X cohorts at a corresponding age. ** percent of Generation Z were enrolled in college in 2018 compared to ** percent of Gen Xers in 1987.

According to a survey conducted in 2024, ** percent of Generation Z students reported that they would be the first in their family to attend college in the United States.

According to a survey conducted in 2023, ** percent of Gen Z teenagers in the United States agreed that college was a smart investment in the future, while ** percent believed that college was more of a gamble that may not pay off in the end. Gen Z teens who identified as Democrats were the most likely demographic group to agree that college was a smart investment, and Gen Z teens who were White were the most likely to think that college was more of a gamble.

In the United States in 2022, ** percent of Gen Z respondents said that after thinking of the student loan debt they assumed for their own education, they would have chosen to work more while they were still in school, followed by ** percent who said that they would have applied for more scholarships.

How it Started

I was interested in collecting data about how Generation Z makes decisions because college is on the horizon for my classmates and me. We are becoming the leaders, entrepreneurs, and creators of tomorrow and behind every successful person, is their ability to make the right decision at the right time.

How I Collected my Data

I collected my data through google forms and before the answers started to trickle in, I created my own hypothesis. I thought that most students in Generation Z would not be afraid to make decisions and that since they are one of the smartest generations, they would be able to tackle the task of picking which college is best for them and why.

Inspiration

I am very much aware that a lot of research is being done to find out more about Generation Z, but I was so inspired by my research coach, Coach Jo, who is currently doing research with Dr. Peggy Dawson about Generation Z and Productivity. I learned that Generation Z is by far the smartest generation, but our attention spans are cut short because of how much we use technology and the internet. This research will help find out whether technology and making decision affects Generation Z and how we, as a society, can make better decisions for better futures.

During a survey of Gen Z students in the United States conducted in May 2023 it was found that close to **** of respondents used AI to get information about something, and ** percent did so to help with their schoolwork. In search for information, high schoolers were the most likely to use AI, while college students used this technology mostly to help with schoolwork.

A survey conducted between October 2023 and January 2024 found that 69 percent of Gen Z consumers in the U.S. at least once watched a professional sporting event. The share of Gen Alpha doing the same was 60 percent, according to their parents. College football was not as popular as the professional sporting events.

Living conditions and family. Values and attitudes. Information and communication behaviour. Political attitudes and political participation.

Topics: Life circumstances and family: life satisfaction; assessment of personal future prospects; assessment of future prospects of own generation; relationship with parents; highest level of school-leaving qualifications of parents; frequency of renunciation due to financial situation; sources of money for personal use; most important source of money.

Values and attitudes: role model available; role model named; life goals; importance of selected life goals; importance of various professional aspects; personal values (comparison of values); attachment to the community, the region, the state, Germany and Europe.

Information and communication behaviour: frequency of use of social networks; preferred platforms; type of use of social networks; interest in politics; points of contact with politics in everyday life; frequency of media use about politics: preferred sources of information about politics; trust in different media.

Political attitudes: satisfaction with democracy; democracy as a good form of government; need for reform in politics; satisfaction with the work of the federal government; trust in institutions; party sympathy; attitudes to politics and society; preference regarding Germany´s future foreign policy; attitude towards the EU.

Political participation: type of political commitment; voluntary work; volunteer work mentioned; interest in the topic of climate protection at Fridays for Future; participation in a Fridays for Future demonstration; agreement to statements on reactions of politics and society to Fridays for Future demonstrations.

Demography: sex; age; highest educational attainment to date; current level of education; type of school/college/university attended; type of school or educational institution; employment; housing situation; migration background; state; city size.

Additionally coded was: respondent ID; filter variable; volunteering and role models; weighting factors.

As of 2024, ** percent of Generation Z college graduates in the United States preferred hybrid work, while ** percent preferred for work to be in-person. Only **** percent of Gen Z college grads preferred work to be fully remote.

According to a survey conducted in 2024, ** percent of hiring managers said that recent Generation Z graduates are more likely to expect high salaries than previous generations in the United States. A further ** percent believed that recent Gen Z grads have a worse work ethic, while ** percent found them to be more entitled compared to prior generations.

According to a survey conducted in 2023, Gen Z adults in the United States were divided on whether college is a smart investment in the future or more of a gamble that may not pay off in the end, with ** percent of Gen Z agreeing with both of these statements. In comparison, Millennials were more likely to say that college was more of a gamble that may not pay off in the end, with ** percent sharing this belief.

According to a survey conducted by Statista Consumer Insights, more than ********** of Generation Z respondents above 18 years in China had obtained a bachelor's or higher degree as of September 2024. Thanks to the mandatory education policy in China, all surveyed Generation Z had completed their education at high school.

The results of a survey conducted among recent college graduates in the United States show that the use of AI at school and work is common for Gen Z. Some ** percent of young adults in the U.S. said they already used generative AI to help with their classwork. Another ** percent also said they would see themselves employing these tools in their professional career. In comparison, ** percent of Gen Z had AI-related concerns of some kind.

In 2024, Generation Z in the United States had an average of roughly ****** U.S. dollars in student loan debt. By contrast, Generation X had the highest student loan debt, amounting to approximately ****** U.S. dollars. The value of outstanding student loans has been consistently rising over the past few decades.

According to a survey conducted among Generation Z in South Korea in 2019, around ** percent of respondents stated that they chose and purchased their clothes by themselves. The share of Gen Z who said their parents paid for the clothes they chose was especially high among middle and high school students, while for college students, over ** percent of respondents said they both chose and paid for clothing.

According to a survey conducted among Generation Z in South Korea in 2019, around **** percent of respondents stated that they spent pocket money to buy snacks and it was followed by buying food and paying for transportation. For youths of college age and above, women spent their pocket money on various fields of purchasing goods and services, while men spent relatively large amounts on games and in-game currencies.

According to a survey conducted among Generation Z in South Korea in 2019, around a third of respondents stated that they received less than 100 thousand South Korean won as monthly pocket money from their parents. About ** percent of middle and high school students in South Korea received less than 100 thousand South Korean won, while around a third of college students received more than *** thousand South Korean won.

Over *** million students were enrolled in Russian higher education institutions in 2023. The number of students enrolled in undergraduate and graduate programs in the country decreased from 2010, when it exceeded ***** million, but has grown in recent years. Leading Russian universities The Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) ranked first in the list of top universities in Russia, according to the QS World University Rankings 2025, which placed it **** worldwide. The Bauman Moscow State Technical University ranked first by faculty-to-student ratio in the country. The third place in the domestic ranking was occupied by the RUDN University in Moscow, which ranked ***** in the world. Job search after the university in Russia In 2022, roughly ***** in ten Russians who graduated from the university in the three previous years were employed in a field related to their studies. Furthermore, approximately *** half of graduates from top 30 universities in Russia were willing to move abroad for better job opportunities in 2020. Around ** percent of Russian Generation Z representatives felt anxious or stressed thinking about their job and career prospects.

Government spending on higher or tertiary education in the United Kingdom was 7.16 billion British pounds in 2023/24, compared with 4.56 billion in the previous financial year.

During a survey held in early 2021, it was found that 83 percent of adults aged between 18 and 29 years old had read a book in any format in the previous year, up by two percent from the share who said the same in 2019. The survey results showed that adults within this age category were more likely than older respondents to have read a book within the last twelve months.

Book readers in the U.S.

While it is mostly believed that book reading is a vanishing pastime, particularly among Millennials, surveys among consumers in the U.S. have shown the opposite. The share of book readers in the U.S. has varied from 72 percent to 79 percent between 2011 and 2016.

In regards to age of book readers in the country, a 2016 survey shows about 80 percent of respondents between the ages of 18 to 29 had read at least one book in the previous 12 months, the highest share amongst all age groups. About 73 percent of the respondents aged between 30 to 49 years old said they read at least one book in the last 12 months. The share among respondents between 50 and 64 years old stood at 70 percent, whereas 67 percent of respondents aged 65 plus stated reading book during the time measured. In terms of education level, book readers in the U.S. are more likely to have a college degree, or at least some college education – 86 percent and 81 percent respectively. Women in the U.S. read slightly more than men; 68 percent of male respondents started reading at least one book in the previous 12 months, against 77 percent of female respondents that said the same.

Despite the rise of digital platforms and the rising popularity of e-reading devices such as Kindle, Kobo and others, printed books still remain the most popular book format in the U.S., as 65 percent of Americans stated preference for printed books in 2016. E-books were consumed by 28 percent of respondents in 2016, whereas audio books were listened by 14 percent of the respondents. Millennials accounted for the largest share of printed book readers in the U.S. – 72 percent as of 2016.