WASHINGTON, D.C. — As higher education confronts declining public confidence in its institutions, new research from Lumina Foundation and Gallup finds that 55% of college students believe their school’s leadership usually makes decisions that are in students’ best interests, while the rest express some reservations.
The majority of students say that when making decisions, the leadership of their college or university acts in students’ best interests “all of the time” (12%) or “most of the time” (43%). About one in three students (35%) say their school acts in their interests “some of the time,” while about one in 10 say their school “rarely” (9%) or “never” (2%) does.
While Republicans in the general adult population are significantly less likely than their Democratic and independent peers to express confidence in higher education, among students, Republicans are the political group most likely to trust their school to make decisions that benefit them. Sixty-two percent of Republican students say their institution’s leadership usually acts in students’ best interests, compared with 55% of Democratic students and half of independent students.
Additionally, students attending institutions that are ranked highly by U.S. News & World Report — particularly those ranked within the top 100 National Universities rankings — are slightly less likely to trust that their school usually acts in students’ best interests.
These results are based on 3,801 responses to the Lumina Foundation-Gallup 2026 State of Higher Education Study. The survey was conducted via web Oct. 2-31, 2025, and all respondents are currently enrolled associate or bachelor’s degree students between the ages of 18 and 59.
School Leaders Enjoy Higher Approval Ratings Than Government Policymakers
Though most of the decisions that directly affect students are likely implemented by their college or university, most students say state and federal governments influence their experience. Nearly six in 10 students say their campus has been changed “a great deal” (14%) or “a moderate amount” (44%) by state or federal policies.
Once again, students at more elite universities report a different experience: Nearly seven in 10 students attending schools ranked among the top 100 National Universities by U.S. News & World Report say they have been at least moderately affected by government policies.
Among students who report being affected by government policies, 56% approve of policies implemented or proposed by state government leaders, and 44% disapprove. Meanwhile, more students disapprove (55%) than approve (45%) of the impact of federal policies on their campus.
This approval divide correlates with political party identification, especially as it relates to students’ perceptions of federal policies. Republican students are somewhat more favorable toward state-level policies that have affected their schools (65%), compared with their Democratic (56%) and independent peers (50%). However, seven in 10 Republican students approve of federal legislation, about twice the percentage of Democratic (36%) and independent students (38%) who say the same.
Students are notably more likely to approve of decisions made by their college or university leadership than those made by government entities. Nearly eight in 10 college students — including 76% of Democrats, 79% of independents and 86% of Republicans — approve of policies and proposals implemented by their college leadership, outpacing their approval of state and federal policies by 23 and 34 percentage points, respectively.
Implications
Recent Lumina-Gallup research finds that college students’ experience contradicts many of the concerns raised by U.S. adults who lack confidence in higher education. By wide margins, both currently enrolled students and graduates agree that their degree is or has been worth the cost and important to their career success. However, while students remain confident in the value of their degree, more than four in 10 also question whether the college or university they are attending consistently acts in their best interests.
While they are still more likely to prefer the solutions and policies enacted by their campus leadership than those imposed by state and federal policymakers, the disconnect between the value students place in their degree and the trust they have in their institution’s administration may be contributing to negative perceptions of college among their friends, family members and peers. With American confidence in higher education sitting 19 percentage points lower in 2026 than a decade earlier, restoring that lost confidence will almost certainly require an increase in trust among those who know higher education best: its students.
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Learn more about how the Lumina Foundation-Gallup State of Higher Education Study works.
