Puisa Kotha Hunibo? Is a college degree still worth it?

A four-year engineering degree can cost anywhere between 8 lakh to20 lakh at a decent private college. Add living expenses, and you’re easily looking at 25–30 lakh. That’s a serious investment. So it’s fair that more young people are asking: is it worth it? The answer isn’t simple. It depends on what one wants. Where degrees still matter: If you want to be a doctor, lawyer, chartered accountant, or work in core engineering fields like civil or mechanical, there’s no way around it. These are regulated professions, formal education is mandatory. Planning to move abroad? Countries like Canada, Australia, and the US use point-based systems where a degree significantly improves your chances. Without one, your options narrow. Even in corporate roles, especially traditional ones, degrees still carry weight. The higher you go, the more credentials tend to matter. Where degrees are losing ground: Software development, design, digital marketing, content, degrees are becoming less relevant. Companies like Google, Apple, and IBM have dropped degree requirements for many roles. They care about what you can do, not where you studied. The bigger issue? Outdated curriculum. Many graduates enter the workforce only to realize they’ve learned more in one year on the job than in four years of college. At the same time, now we have online courses and bootcamps that teach practical, current skills in months. Sometimes, a20,000 course can be more relevant than a 20 lakh degree. The shift to proof of work: Today, portfolios matter. A strong GitHub, a solid design portfolio, or published work often says more than a degree. Employers want proof of work, not just credentials. The middle ground: If you’ve already started a degree, finish it. An incomplete degree can hurt more than help. If you haven’t, think carefully. Some paths require degrees. Not all. At Moneybar, this is exactly the kind of question we want more people to think about, because financial decisions like these shape years of our lives. Degrees still open doors. But they’re no longer the only doors. The real question: Is your25–30 lakh degree actually doing what it needs to do for you?
Paweü Kayina
founder@moneybar.in