When I graduated in the early 2010s I recall the number was closer to ~35%. Honestly given the economy today and the expectations of employers of having a college degree for even basic stuff, these numbers seem pretty low.

In Europe only about 43% have a college degree. So even with heavily subsidized schools there is really only a certain percentage of people that take this path.

[1]:https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/w/d...

> the expectations of employers of having a college degree for even basic stuff

This is mostly an unintentional side-effect of civil rights law, stemming from Griggs v. Duke Power Co.