What Think?

Only about one out of ten Americans has ever gone to college, but almost all of them have ideas on the subject. Last week FORTUNE gave its summary of their views. With Pollster Elmo Roper, and an advisory board of educators, it had just completed a nationwide survey probing into everything from costs to Communism and coeducation.

It came as no surprise that most Americans (83%) want their sons to go to college, and that 69% want to send their daughters too. Professional men and executives are the most anxious to have their sons win their degrees (only one out of 100 think they should "do something else" besides going to college). But more than two-thirds of the farmers and wage earners in the survey also want a college education for their sons. A smaller majority (56%) think it would be a pretty good idea for the U.S. Government to start passing out federal scholarships to send "qualified" youngsters who "otherwise couldn't afford to go."

As for the college to pick, parents have no particular favorite. Harvard leads the men's list, but with only 3.5%. Vassar (2%) is tops for women. Sixty percent want their daughters to go to coed schools, and 58% favor the same for their sons. By two to one, U.S. parents prefer schools where their children will have a chance to join fraternities and sororities.

What should a student get out of college? Most people think that the liberal arts may be fine for their daughters, but that a son's education should be weighted toward training him "for a particular occupation or profession"--with the liberal arts secondary. One group who are inclined to reverse the order: college graduates themselves. But even with them, the liberal arts have no runaway; 44% of the grads prefer a liberal arts emphasis, 38% are for technical and professional emphasis, and 18% say "it depends" or have no opinion.

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