The Gen Z divide is deepening
More takeaways from my Arkansas listening sessions.
For months, I’ve argued that a unique pairing of pandemic lockdowns and formative years spent on social media splintered Generation Z. Insights from my most recent listening sessions in Arkansas reveal that these subdivisions will likely become even more stark as new technologies continue to evolve – and as the college landscape changes, with less of social clout granted to elite universities that come with high costs and no guaranteed return on investment.
Across four listening sessions last week, I noticed five key trends:
Young men and women have a different outlook, with Gen Z women saying the future feels more daunting
ChatGPT is reshaping the student experience
The cost of college is the biggest determining factor in where students go
Gen Z’s American Dream includes happiness
Young people are happiest offline
Let me explain.
We already know that there are two Gen Zs: those who grew up before Covid-19 and those who grew up during and after the pandemic. This framework surfaced in listening sessions with young people across the country in 2022 and really started to take hold amid the 2024 election cycle, when it became clear that younger Gen Zers have a different, more glib view of politics than their older, more idealistic siblings – much of which I attribute to a distrust in authority shaped during the pandemic and social media algorithms that feed different groups of people (including young men and women) different content, leading to different life expectations – and possibly outcomes.
Beyond these differences, the introduction and speed of change with generative AI tools like ChatGPT in K-12 and higher education is already creating further divides within Gen Z. And it just so happens that younger Gen Zers (i.e. those in Gen Z 2.0, who’s adolescence was disrupted by Covid and spent online), are the ones experiencing high school and college during the rise of AI.
Further, the college landscape looks very different than it did even just four years ago. As the cost of college rises and controversy unfolds at some of the country’s most storied academic institutions, there’s been a swift unraveling of trust in higher education and many of these historic bastions of success are losing their sheen. President Donald Trump and his administration have thrown fuel on the fire by slashing federal funding at schools like Harvard, further politicizing specific universities – and higher education altogether. As Trump said during a recent address to graduates at the University of Alabama: “The next chapter of the American story will not be written by the Harvard Crimson, it will be written by you, The Crimson Tide.”
All of that sets the scene for what I heard from students in Arkansas.
Gen Z women say the future feels heavier for them
High school students are quick to recognize the gender gap in their own communities. At Ignite Bentonville, the students told me it manifests most in visions of the future and a willingness to make plans beyond the current moment in time. Often, they said, girls seem more stressed out than their male counterparts.
“Guys out there have short-term future plans. And they’re more into two years, three years from now. Whereas girls, they more look into their whole college,” said Abraham, 17, at Ignite Bentonville. “They have 10 years set out for them, I’m always hearing plans being talked about.”
Eli at Ignite Bentonville said he sees young women planning more, even just with “simple things.” While he wakes up and decides what to do that day or an hour before, he said, “I feel like girls will plan more than a day in advance, often. That’s not a stereotype.”
“Trying to make plans with boys is probably the worst thing I’ve ever done in the world,” said Ava, 17, at Ignite Bentonville.
“A lot of times guys are a lot more stress free about a lot of that stuff. I know I personally think a lot about the future and am worried about so many different things. Guys are more go with the flow,” said Hailey, 17, at Ignite Bentonville.
Asked why they may feel more stress than the young men in their lives, here’s what some of the young women at Ignite Bentonville told me:
“Girls are more emotional, guys are more take it as it is,” said Ava. “I feel like girls also have a lot higher expectations sometimes in the household. The world is a messy place, so girls might have a little bit more rules. If I were to have a brother, my dad would probably be more free with my brother than me. Not because of anything I’ve done, just what the world is and how we have to deal with it.”
“Personally, I control a lot of the things I do. I have a calendar, I have a Notion with my whole life on it, and I have a physical agenda on top of that. I think about it a lot because it’s such a nuisance. And it stresses me out a lot. But the reason why is because I want to feel like I have a sense of control over my life… so I don’t feel uncertain,” said Sanjana, 18.
“Women in society, there generally are a lot more expectations and things they’re just expected to do off the bat. I think a lot of that is the reason why women in general not specifically to anyone, they overthink more or they’re worried about what they have to do next or their next move,” said Kennedy, 17.
Meanwhile, at University of Arkansas Fayetteville, when I asked if students see a gender gap, I was told by the college-aged women that they don’t hang out with a lot of men. Later, talking about Covid-19’s impact on their lives, it became clear that part of the reason why these young women say they stick to themselves is a result of habits formed during the pandemic, when they were sophomores and juniors in high school.
“I feel like [the pandemic] kind of stunted my social abilities with guys specifically. I never had a boyfriend in high school and so I feel like I never really learned how to interact with men. And now I’m just scared. I’m like, ‘I don’t know what to talk to you about,’” said Riley, 21, at University of Arkansas.
“I have a really good tight group in high school and there was a lot of guy friends too, and I got to college, and then I didn’t meet a whole lot of guys around. I mean I have some guy friends, but not like I was calling them at home, but not here really. Because where would I interact with them? Like at a frat house… a bar?,” said Megan, 21, at University of Arkansas, calling that “weird.”
Kim, 22, who lived in an apartment building near a group of guys, said that while she became friendly with them: “They’re just children basically. I don’t think they’ve grown up yet.” She said she was recently thinking about the fact that she can’t pinpoint what they talk about together. “We don’t really talk about much. We kind of just watch movies… But they’re my friends. I love them to death, and I think we became friends just because of proximity.”
Key takeaway: Gen Z women say the future is scary and are planning out years ahead to stay in control, while Gen Z men aren’t thinking about it as much and are taking it day by day. Our social media culture and the isolation of the pandemic continues to shape how young men and women approach each other, and how they navigate their own lives.
ChatGPT is reshaping the student experience
As I wrote about on Tuesday, nearly all of the students I spoke with in Arkansas say they use AI all the time, and some even use it multiple times a day. Students expressed varying levels of comfort with generative AI, but they all noticed a clear difference between classes that allow tools like ChatGPT and those that don’t. For current high school seniors, ChatGPT hit the web when they were in 9th grade; they didn’t know high school without it. Both high school and college students can pinpoint the moment in their academic experience when ChatGPT was introduced, saying that life was different pre and post ChatGPT.
“AI is our future, and we know that,” said Trey at Ignite Bentonville.
“To be quite frank, I use it to write all my essays,” said Harry, 18, at Ignite Bentonville.
“I use it for everything,” said Kim at University of Arkansas Fayetteville.
“I don’t know anyone who’s not using it,” said Riley at University of Arkansas Fayetteville.
Key takeaway: Whether they’re in high school or college, students are dependent on AI. They know it will be part of their future, and they can already point to the difference it makes in their daily lives.
Cost of college is the biggest determining factor in where students go
At University of Arkansas Fayetteville, each student shared how affordability influenced their college decision-making process. The school offers scholarships for students from nearby or neighboring states, which was crucial for three out of the four students I spoke to there.
Kim, who is from Tulsa, Oklahoma, initially went to a community college and then received a Pell grant and a scholarship that awarded her near-in state tuition at University of Arkansas. “I just had a bunch of scholarships that I applied for and that was really the main reason why I was able to go here.”
Megan, who is from Edwardsville, Illinois, would have gone to the University of Alabama if she could have afforded it, she said, but the tuition was too high and she wasn’t aware of a reciprocal scholarship like the one at UA Fayetteville. “I would have been $100 grand in debt, but here I’m only – not only – like, $40… so that was big.”
As an only child, Parker, 20, who is from Dallas, Texas, said she’s fortunate that the cost of college wasn’t too much of a determining factor for her, and yet, she said, whenever she would bring up going to Southern Methodist University, her parents would say the price was too high for a school 45 minutes down the road from where she grew up.
Meanwhile, Riley, who is from Little Rock, Arkansas, was considering Belmont University, but it was going to be “so expensive.” University of Arkansas “started off much less expensive, because it’s in state and it’s not a private school,” she said. On top of that, she got into the honors college. “That gave me a pretty good scholarship, and so that was a big factor.”
At University of Arkansas Pine Bluff, students shared similar stories.
Meosha, 25, who’s from Dallas, Texas, said that she ended up at UA Pine Bluff because she received a scholarship for band. She plays the flute and the bigelow. “The scholarships outweighed most schools,” she said.
The same was true at Ignite Bentonville, where students, especially from big families, said the cost of college is often prohibitive.
Trey, 18, and a graduating senior, will be attending University of Arkansas in the fall. “I got into the University of Cornell, just to turn it down to go to Arkansas. My family can’t help me with any tuition, so in my opinion, I’m choosing a better school to go to for free.”
Chloe, 16, said she has five siblings and lives in a single-parent household. “I’m on my own for college, and so it’s definitely a consideration for me,” she said. “I could not really justify the cost difference for the difference in education that I would get somewhere other than University of Arkansas.”
Cooper, 17, has four siblings. He said he really wanted to go to an out-of-state school, but that “it’s off the table,” because of the cost. “Looking at schools that are in state and are not so highly in cost is a big portion” of where he’ll choose to go to college.
Eli, a graduating senior, is not going to college. As someone who wants to go into the media world, “there’s a debate behind it,” he said. But, from his point-of-view and for what he wants to do, “it’s a waste of time and money for something you can learn anywhere.
Key takeaway: As the cost of college continues to rise, the decision making process is most often determined by financial aid and scholarships. Students are increasingly skeptical of attending elite universities and many are now prioritizing value over prestige, choosing schools that offer better support and a strong education tailored to their goals.
Gen Z’s American Dream includes happiness
In nearly every listening session I’ve ever held, I’ve asked what the phrase ‘American Dream’ means to the young people in the room and if they think it’s achievable. Young Americans know that today’s American Dream is different than it was for generations past, and they always tell me that it looks different depending on who you ask. But across the board, I’ve realized that for Gen Z, the American Dream includes some semblance of work-life balance or happiness.
Asked what the American Dream means to them, here’s some of what I heard last week:
“Having had a successful career and then retiring and having kids (or kids, then retire),” said Parker at the University of Arkansas. “I think the American Dream is having a successful career, eventually starting a family, and marrying and living a happy life, being able to provide for your family without worrying about finances.”
“Everyone’s American Dream is similar but different,” said Megan at the University of Arkansas.
Kim at the University of Arkansas said that as immigrants from Vietnam, her parents ‘American Dream’ was quite different. They got married, had kids, and bought a house. “My mom doesn’t work. She’s my American Dream… just honestly being able to provide without working much.”
“Being an African American female, the American Dream to me is not what it means to my counterparts,” said Kelsea, 22, at University of Arkansas Pine Bluff. “It kind of depends on your perspective of what the American Dream is and how to even fit into the American Dream.”
“It’s not designed for people of color, not saying we can’t do it, but the barrier is higher,” said Cinia, 23, at University of Arkansas Pine Bluff. “Not saying we don’t want the American Dream, whatever that is, we just want to be successful in everything: financial, emotional.”
“The American Dream is tailor-made to every single person,” said Lauren at University of Arkansas Pine Bluff. She said someone recently told her, “‘You’re supposed to have kids.’” She replied, “No, I’m not, who told you that.”
“The American Dream is very individualistic. There is not one single defined dream like there was back in the 50’s,” said Ridhima, 17, at Ignite Bentonville.
“Many of us have a very positive outlook because we’re pretty privileged compared to a lot of America,” said Sanjana at Ignite Bentonville. “In my life, I think I can reach the American Dream because I have access to education, to mentors, to resources. Especially now in this time with AI, I think the American Dream is more attainable if we’re able to use our resources very wisely in this very fragile time.”
“The typical 1960’s suburban dream, I think that for a lot of people, it’s hard to reach that dream… I don’t know if the American Dream is possible for everybody,” said Kennedy at Ignite Bentonville.
Key takeaway: There is no uniform American Dream. Young Americans are increasingly defining success through personal autonomy and happiness, rather than traditional milestones like homeownership, marriage, or parenthood.
Young people are happiest offline
I asked most of the students I spoke with what makes them happy. Their answers were similar across the board, and tracked with what I heard when I asked a range of young adults this question a couple of weeks ago.
Here’s some of what they shared:
Basic things, spending time with family, friends, listening to music
Being active, moving, being outside, around people I love
Knowing I’m close with God, outside of that with family
Religion, being outside in nature
Creating, art, being in nature
Being able to help others
Friends
When I slow down and take a second to count my blessings
Key takeaway: Young people are happiest when they are offline. Every single answer I heard was something that happens in the real world, and often, with other people. This generation is acutely aware of how toxic social media is for their mental health, and while they use it and other technology (like ChatGPT) every day, they feel best when they log off.
Noteworthy reads:
What’s driving Gen Z’s voting behavior?, Katherine Kim for POLITICO
As Young Catholics Move Toward Traditionalism, Views Are Mixed Whether Pope Leo XIV Can Lead the Way, M.J. Koch for The New York Sun
A Deep Dive on the Wealthiest Young People, Ellyn Briggs for Morning Consult