Overall, 73% of respondents agreed their higher education experience was worth the cost.
Gen Zers generally have strong values related to racial justice and sustainability. Mobilizations like the Global Climate March, led by Gen Z activist Greta Thunberg, thrive on the activism of young people. Climate change is one of the issues Gen Zers care about most.
Gen Z has a high school graduation rate of approximately 84.6%, which is higher than previous generations like Millennials (78%) and Gen X (77.8%).
This generation want to live a life of financial freedom and independence, but they are also deeply purpose-driven. They value authenticity and living a life where their values and actions align.
What is the percentage of Gen Z students attending college compared to previous generations? Gen Z students are attending college at slightly lower rates compared to previous generations; 65% of Gen Z students are enrolled in college, compared to 67% of Millennials at the same age.
Born between 1997 and 2012 – meaning they're aged from around 11 to 26 in 2023 – Gen Z is the largest generation ever. Its members comprise around 20% of Australia's population and almost 30% of the world's population.
Millennial Education and the Workplace
Millennials are the most educated generation ever.
They're impulsive. Another weakness of Gen Z is that they can be quite impulsive. With instant gratification being so easily accessible, this generation has difficulty waiting for anything. They want what they want and they want it now!
The Implication: Gen Z can prioritize friendship and invest time in inviting people for coffee, meeting up and hanging out with colleagues and people outside of work as well. Others can support Gen Z by reaching out and creating relationships with them, offering a listening ear, advice and companionship.
Generation Z considers itself more accepting and open-minded than any generation before it. Almost half of Gen Zs are minorities, compared to 22% of Baby Boomers, and the majority of Gen Z supports social movements such as Black Lives Matter, transgender rights, and climate change.
Known for being creative, inclusive and tech-savvy, this generation likes a hands-on approach to learning and places a high importance on education. According to the Pew Research Center, Gen Z is the least likely to drop out of high school and the most likely to go to college, compared with older generations.
As of January 2022, only 51% of Gen Z teens are interested in pursuing a four-year degree, down from 71 percent in May 2020, according to a recent study by ECMC Group. And over two years, there was a 6.6% decline in total undergraduate enrollment between fall 2019 and fall 2021.
A recent report from Barnes & Noble College shows that Gen Z predominantly learns by doing and prefers active learning environments. Theirs is a generation that thrives when given a challenging, fully-immersive educational experience in which they can work through problems and really test their knowledge.
Generation Z has more conservative spending habits and is more focused on saving money than millennials were at their age. Gen Z tends to be interested in purchases that provide the maximum amount of value for their money, while millennials are more focused on the buying experience.
'Devastating – economically, socially and much more'
In the short term, Gen Z's stress is leading to ambivalence and withdrawal in their professional lives. According to 2022 data from Gallup, they are the most disengaged group at work. They also report more overall stress and work-related burnout than other cohorts.
Among the things Generation Z cares about, racial and gender equality are at the top of the list. Gen Z is also concerned about climate change and the potential impacts their generation will have to deal with in the years to come.
Gen Z and mental health. Regarding the stats, it's clear that Gen Z is struggling. A 2022 survey of Gen Z young adults (ages 19 through 24) found that 42% are diagnosed with a mental health condition.
According to a recent survey of 1,300 managers, three out of four agree that Gen Z is harder to work with than other generations — so much so that 65% of employers said they have to fire them more often.
Gen Z is also the smartest and best educated generation. Having an unlimited wealth of information at our disposal has not gone to waste. In America, 57 percent of Gen Z is reported to have enrolled in a two-year or four-year college, compared to 52 percent of Millenials and 43 percent of Gen X.
Gen Z moms feel less confident.
They put more emphasis on being the "perfect mom" compared to Millennials, and they strive to reach more parenting ideals, from keeping kids busy to owning the scheduling for the entire family.
Gen Z (42%) is about twice as likely as Americans over 25 (23%) to battle depression and feelings of hopelessness.
A CM Group consumer research effort that polled 1,000 consumers found Gen Z consumers are better educated, more practical, more ambitious and more skeptical than Millennials.
Such changes will continue as Generation Z, also known as the iGeneration, Post-Millennials or the Homeland Generation, come on the scene. Generation Z, the most technologically advanced group to date, could soon be introducing some changes of their own.