> further education in valuable topics is valuable to people even if they are not motivated

Sure, but that doesn’t need to be college. Many European countries have colleges in name only that actually function as trade schools. An unmotivated learner should go to a cheap 2-year trade school and then start earning.

> college is about getting people into massive debt to fund college administrators

Completely agree. That said, we have standout colleges where the purpose is to educate our next generation of elites. That’s still important.