The 2026 State of California Learners

We’re kicking off California Working Learner Week (October 5-9, 2026) with the release of The 2026 State of California Learners report produced in partnership with Gallup.

At College Futures Foundation, we believe listening to learners is fundamental to understanding their experiences, aspirations and expectations of postsecondary education. What they told us this year offers both affirmation and a challenge: Californians continue to believe in the promise of postsecondary education, but they need that promise to translate into real opportunity.

Among the findings:

• Learners believe postsecondary education has value, especially when it leads to good jobs. Nine in 10 California adults without a college degree say at least one type of postsecondary credential is extremely or very valuable, and more than eight in 10 unenrolled adults believe the investment would be worth it. And 82% say the value of a credential depends on whether graduates find good jobs after completing their program.
• Significant barriers still stand between learners and opportunity. More than half of unenrolled adults point to cost, scheduling and program location as very significant barriers. While 62% of current students looked for information about the expected return on investment of their program, more than one in three who searched had difficulty finding it.
• For many learners, flexibility is not a preference. It is a prerequisite. Nearly two-thirds of Californians without a college degree prefer an evolving learning model with features such as competency-based learning, flexible timing and online options.
• Learners are also navigating a rapidly changing economy. More than half of California students use AI for schoolwork at least weekly, and more than half say AI had at least some influence on the program of study they selected.

Through Our Golden Ticket, we’ve been making the case that California has an extraordinary opportunity to build greater economic mobility and prosperity by ensuring more Californians earn postsecondary credentials of value. This report adds an essential perspective to that conversation: learners are telling us what needs to be true for that opportunity to become real in their lives.