A recent article describes the return on investment (ROI) offered by a college degree.
The good news for many Bachelor’s degrees: “The report found that almost two-thirds of the 26,000 bachelor’s degree programs in the study enabled a majority of their graduates to make enough money to recover their costs in 10 years or less after graduation.”
“All of the largest programs in electrical and communications engineering, for instance, allowed most of their graduates to recoup their educational investment in five years or less. But many programs in some fields, like drama and dance, show no return on investment, the report found, meaning most of their graduates are earning less than a typical high school graduate.”
“College consultants caution against choosing a course of study solely because of its potential salary. It’s often difficult for high school juniors, for example, to know what areas or careers will interest them six years later (or longer, if they attend graduate school), said Jeff Levy, an independent educational consultant in Santa Monica, Calif.”
“He did suggest that students who are interested in a degree because it currently appears lucrative — say, nursing — seek volunteer experience in the field. That will help determine if they really want to pursue the degree and will help them when applying, because such programs are often highly competitive.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/13/your-money/college-degree-investment-return.html
According to FREOPP.org, “The median bachelor’s degree is worth $306,000 for students who graduate on time. But the median conceals enormous variation. Some fields of study, including engineering, computer science, nursing, and economics, can produce returns of $1 million or more. Others, including art, music, religion, and psychology, often have a zero or even negative net financial value. When accounting for the risk that a student will take longer than four years to finish college, or drop out entirely, median ROI drops to $129,000. 28% of bachelor’s degree programs have negative ROI when adjusting for the risk of non-completion. If ROI is adjusted to reflect the underlying cost of education, not just tuition charges, the share of non-performing programs rises to 37%.”
Elaine Korngold, LPC, offers career counseling and financial therapy to help people figure out the right direction for them mentally and financially, considering college degree as an investment. Contact Elaine to learn more.