If there’re too many unprepared/underprepared students, the colleges can’t let them all fail (i.e. not to graduate), can they? The proliferation of majors, and grade inflation, are part of colleges’ responses. Why would that be inconsistent or surprising?
I didn’t pick Gender Studies for this purpose. I picked it to illustrate a major at UCLA with light course requirements. Do I think Gender Studies is a rigorous major? No. Do I think it’s the least rigorous major? Again no.
I don’t judge a major’s worthiness by earning potentials, but by their academic potentials. Of the 1,800+ majors, a large number of them don’t meet that standard.