That’s the focus of a recent Chronicle article titled, “Education Pays, but How Much?” Here’s the basis for the question: Family incomes haven’t increased, but tuition has gone up; students are graduating with higher debts, and then must try and penetrate an increasingly tough job market. So is the financial burden incurred by a college education worth it?
A recent College Board report (”Education Pays“) highlights both the financial and nonfinancial payoffs of an undergraduate degree. The report has entered into a highly controversial discussion on the value of college degrees, though College Board analyst Sandy Baum explains that the report is “about data, not advocacy….We’re not telling anyone to do anything.”
That being said, the report has been criticized for overstating or inflating the benefit of a degree.
Report findings include the fact that high school graduates make 66% less than college graduates over the course of a 40-year career. And they make two or three times less than people with advanced degrees. Those who attend college but who do not complete their degrees end up making somewhere in between what high school graduates and college graduates make.
“There is evidence that there is a payoff to every year of education,” explains Baum. “On average, every year of education does pay off. Every year pays off more than the year before.”
When determining the value of a B.A., a few more factors need to be taken into account. First, while every year helps, most everyone would agree that taking $30,000 in loans and then dropping out after a single year does not make much financial sense. Second, the value of a degree varies greatly depending on what the degree is in and where it is from. Also, of course, the amount of time and the amount of money one spends on a college degree weighs in on the value question.
The report also states that high school graduates are more likely to be unemployed (9.7% for over 25-year olds) than those with college degrees (4.6% for over 25-year olds).
In terms of the nonfinancial payoffs, the article explains that college graduates are “more likely to vote, to volunteer, and to exercise, and less likely to smoke or to be obese.”
Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of the FinAid website, explains how he likes the education-health connection. College graduates probably make better health choices because they’re better educated, he explains. “It’s nice to say if you graduate with a four-year degree, you won’t just be wealthier, you’ll also be healthier.”
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Read the full article: What’s a College Degree Really Worth?
