While the nations’ housing market pulls itself up by its bootstraps and Wall Street strides to new heights, young adults who lack such investment options continue to struggle to find an economic foothold in the aftermath of the Great Recession.

Making matters worse, the cost of a college education is skyrocketing, forcing students to pile on more debt and ensuring this generation will enter the work force with an extreme disadvantage compared to those who came before.

Concerns such as these have caused some to question the monetary viability of a college degree.

But new research finds that a college diploma is more important than ever.

People with a college diploma have enjoyed a net increase in jobs by 9.1 percent since the economic downturn began, and have an unemployment rate of only 3.3 percent versus the nations’ 7.6 percent, according to The New York Times.

Conversely, the employment rate for those with only high school diplomas decreased by 9 percent since the recession started, while the rate for those with some college under their belts but no bachelor’s degree remained essentially flat, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

So yes, fellow students, you will most likely one day, with luck and hard work, be able to pay off your loans and enjoy the fruits of your labor — that is if you stay in school and finish college.

But we simply cannot accept the status quo of ever rising tuition rates — we must also be citizen activists who help spread the word to protect schools from budget cuts, as well as bolstering political candidates who support increased funding for higher education with our votes.

To be degree-less in the choppy conditions of the Great Recession isn’t the best scenario.

But upon finishing college, our chances of circumnavigating treacherous economic waters will increase dramatically, so let’s make the best of it.