Personal finance guru Dave Ramsey criticized some students' approach to education, saying that "all education is not smart" and warning students that pursuing degrees without clear financial payoffs is a sign of poor judgment rather than intelligence.
In a video posted on YouTube, Ramsey, known for his no-nonsense approach to debt and wealth building, criticized the modern trend of accumulating credentials without a clear return on investment.
In the clip, he said that while education is valuable, that value is strictly monetary.
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"Education is valuable. Valuable in terms of money. It makes you money," Ramsey said, rejecting the idea of learning for learning's sake if it doesn't pay the bills.
And with the cost of college tuition rising at over 3% for the 2025-26 school year, according to U.S. News, it's smart to be strategic when choosing what to study.
Ramsey told viewers to avoid "absurd degrees" that have no application in the real world. He specifically mocked niche fields, citing a PhD in German polka history as an example of a "useless" degree.
"All education is not smart. Some people are stupid about education," he said. "Isn't that the paradox of the world?"
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The people who end up with the highest-paying jobs after graduation have degrees in fields like computer science and engineering, medicine and healthcare, data science and analytics, finance and artificial intelligence and machine learning, according to the University of Bridgeport.
Ramsey highlighted a common disconnect in the labor market: highly credentialed people who struggle to make a living. He compared perpetual students to thermometers passively collecting degrees like a thermometer collects degrees of temperature, yet lacking the ability to financially support their families.
He advised students to pursue knowledge only in areas where the degree acts as a direct lever for higher income or better business acumen.
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"Get a degree, get some knowledge in an area that actually has application in the marketplace," Ramesy said, adding that a degree should result in a "better quality of income" or a "better ability to run your own business."
For Ramsey, the bottom line is simple: If the culture doesn't care enough about a subject to pay for it, the degree is useless.
As college costs continue to rise, his warning is a reminder to treat education not as a calculated financial transaction rather than a hobby.
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