Bryan Caplan is an economist who teaches at George Mason University, a blogger at EconLog, and the author of The Case Against Education, among other books. He appeared on The Bob Zadek Show to discuss his argument that higher education primarily serves as a signaling mechanism rather than a source of useful job skills. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
The Signaling Model of Education
Caplan’s central thesis is that while doing well in school correlates with better employment and higher earnings, most of what students study is never used after the final exam. He argues that employers pay for degrees not because of the job skills they represent but because completing a degree signals intelligence, work ethic, and conformity. As Caplan put it, studying subjects one does not use is a way of persuading employers that one is good. He notes that when everyone obtains a high school diploma, employers demand college; when everyone has college, they demand a master’s degree. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
Caplan distinguishes between human capital—the genuine skills schools teach, such as literacy and numeracy—and signaling, which he describes as getting certified or stamped. He uses the analogy of a diamond: its value can be raised either by expert cutting or by an expert’s certification that it is flawless. Similarly, education can improve a person or merely certify that person to employers. Caplan identifies three traits that a degree signals: intelligence, because smart people find school easier; hard work, because even smart people must exert effort to finish; and conformity, because graduates demonstrate willingness to follow instructions. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
Government Subsidies and the Cost of Education
Caplan argues that government subsidies for education create a disconnect between the payer and the spender, making students less careful about costs. He contends that if students paid their own money, they would be more careful with their decisions, though he does not consider this the sole problem. He emphasizes that the real issue is what students actually study and whether it is useful or merely a form of showing off. Caplan states that most people try to make college cheaper so more people attend, whereas he seeks to stop the madness and return to a society where one can get a good job right out of high school. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
Bob Zadek raised the concept of “diploma mills”—institutions that sell degrees without requiring genuine work. Caplan responded that while most universities are not classic diploma mills, they do make students jump through numerous hoops, and a shocking number of students start, pay, and then do not finish. He notes that at lower-ranked schools, most students would not finish even if attending full-time. Caplan describes his view as more pessimistic than the diploma mill analogy because students spend years doing boring work they dislike and receive only a seal of approval rather than job skills. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
Rewarding Knowledge Directly
Bob Zadek proposed that government could reward people directly for becoming educated rather than subsidizing education itself, allowing individuals to choose courses out of curiosity. Caplan agreed, noting that one key flaw of education is that people quickly forget material they do not use. He conducted research for his book on what American adults actually know, rather than relying on final exams or exit exams, which he considers poor measures because of forgetting. Caplan argues that employers reward what you actually know now, not what you used to know—unless the goal is simply to impress them. He explains that a good grade in a subject like European history signals to employers that one could learn other things they want known, even if the history itself is forgotten. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
The Swiss Vocational Model
Caplan points to Switzerland as a preferable alternative to the American education system. In Switzerland, only about 10% of people finish college, but the country has a strong system of vocational training for young people. Caplan describes Switzerland as one of the most skilled countries in the world, where people know how to do their jobs and often seem overqualified. He notes that Switzerland has almost no underclass and a much smaller population dependent on government. For children who dislike school, Switzerland offers training as woodworkers, steelworkers, or train conductors. Caplan considers this a more socially valuable system than one where people spend years studying subjects they will not need. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
Population and Immigration
A caller named Evan raised concerns about overpopulation, citing what he called “Overpopulation Syndrome” and referencing Brownian kinetic theory from high school chemistry. Bob Zadek noted the question was off-message but asked Caplan to respond briefly. Caplan acknowledged that population has costs such as congestion but argued that higher populations are more creative and produce more innovation. He asked listeners to imagine deleting half the names from their music collections, half the directors of movies they like, or half the inventions. Caplan stated that in his book Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids, he devotes a chapter to the neglected benefits of higher population, which he says far outweigh the bads for the foreseeable future. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
Motivation and Future Projects
Bob Zadek asked Caplan whether he would have written The Case Against Education if government spent nothing on education and students paid entirely out of pocket. Caplan responded that the topic is intellectually interesting regardless of government funding, but he would not have written the book if government were not pouring money into education, because then it would not be an important topic. He stated that he likes to choose topics that are both intellectually interesting and important. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
Caplan mentioned that his next book would be a non-fiction graphic novel on immigration titled All Roads Lead to Open Borders, in collaboration with web cartoonist Zach Weinersmith of Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal. He also noted that The Case Against Education costs twenty dollars and that his writings are available on his website and on EconLog, where he blogs with David Henderson and Scott Sumner. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
Across episodes
The excerpts come from a single episode, so they show no development of Caplan’s views across multiple appearances. The episode touches on higher education, signaling, government subsidies, vocational training, population, and immigration, but the excerpts do not indicate how Caplan’s arguments may have changed over time or in other episodes. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
What the sources do not cover
The excerpts do not state Caplan’s educational background, the date of his birth, or his full academic title beyond professor of economics at George Mason University. They do not provide the specific findings of the studies Caplan cites on adult knowledge, nor do they give the full title or publication date of The Case Against Education. The excerpts also do not cover any other episodes of The Bob Zadek Show featuring Caplan, so no comparison across appearances is possible. Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018)
Episodes
1 appearance, 2018–2018.
- Bryan Caplan’s Case Against Higher Education (2018) — The Case Against Education and Signaling. Professor of Economics at George Mason University