College students, most people think the degree you're earning is not worth the investment.

That’s a chief finding from a Pew Research study of 2,142 American adults (ages 18 and over) surveyed via telephone, and 1,055 college presidents surveyed online.

Overall, 57 percent of the general public surveyed says a college education is not worth the investment.

Some more noteworthy takeaways from the study:

• 22 percent of the general public feels college is affordable, and 44 percent of college presidents feel it's affordable for most people.
• 86 percent of college grads feel college was a good investment.
• Those surveyed said they estimate they would make about $20,000 more per year with a college degree instead of a high school diploma. This closely matches recent census data.
• Private college tuition and fees have nearly tripled since 1980, while public institution costs have nearly doubled.
• The general public ranks a college education as the least important factor for a young person to succeed, falling behind: “a good work ethic,” “knowing how to get along with people,” and “work skills learned on the job.”