Is a College Degree Worth the Cost?

Is a college degree worth the cost?  Articles, studies and reports constantly highlight the high cost of a college education and the resulting debt with which so many college graduates find themselves encumbered. The question inevitably raised is whether the ends justify the means.  Do college graduates, despite their debt, find themselves better off than their peers who bypassed the college route?

While there are exceptions to every rule, statistics clearly show that, for most students, the more you learn the more you earn.  Analysis of U.S. Census data for 2019 indicated that, in every state, median weekly earnings was closely correlated with the level of the one’s education.  Nationwide, the median weekly salary of those with a high school diploma was $730, those with an associate’s degree was $862, those with a bachelor’s degree was $1,198, those with a master’s degree was $1,434, and those with a doctoral degree was $1,825 – two and half times the weekly salary of high school graduates with no further education.

Findings of the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce agree that the more education the better.  But the Center warns that the program of study – the college major – matters even more than education level when it comes to salary comparison.  College graduates with majors in early childhood education and social services are likely to receive wages similar to those earned by colleagues with only a high school diploma.  However, college graduates with majors in pharmaceutical sciences, computer engineering, and almost every other STEM field, typically far out-earn their colleagues with lesser degrees. 

Of course, students also need to consider the employment rate for their potential career field. A recent report published by Georgetown University’s Public Policy Institute found that majors with some of the lowest unemployment rates are chemistry, finance and nursing, while majors with some of the highest unemployment rates include anthropology, photography and film.  

Students need to realize that colleges charge the same tuition regardless of the field of study.  Students majoring in the highest paying fields (Petroleum, Chemical, Aerospace or Computer Engineering) are charged the same tuition as those majoring in some of the lowest paying fields (Early Childhood Education, Family Studies, Photojournalism and Social Work).  

So when considering the question of whether a college degree is worth the cost, students might want to balance the desire to follow their passion with the importance of being fiscally responsible.  Ideally, the salary from one’s future career allows for the repayment of debts incurred preparing for life’s work.

Susan Alaimo is the founder of SAT Smart. For the past 25 years, SAT Smart’s Ivy League educated tutors have prepared students for the PSAT, SAT, ACT, Subject Tests, AP courses, and all high school subjects. Visit www.SATsmart.com or call 908-369-5362.