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I've heard this claim being made for as long as I've been alive, and I'd agree that it was probably true 10, 20 years ago. Since college prices have risen so f

I've heard this claim being made for as long as I've been alive, and I'd agree that it was probably true 10, 20 years ago. Since college prices have risen so fast, while wages have gone down, there's a good argument for forgoing school. The average 18 year old paying $150K for a Sociology degree at some expensive non-ivy private school is going to be making $30K a year with or without his degree, for many years. Besides the loss of 4 years of income, the $150K (which will end up costing 2.5x-3x after interest) would have earned a lot of money invested in the market.

bradleyjg 11y ago
As of 2013, the median earnings for full time workers 25-32 with just a high school diploma was $28,000 and they had a 12.2% unemployment rate. For those with a bachelor's degree, it was $45,500 and the unemployment rate was 3.8%. Those are medians, not averages. Things are only getting worse for high school diploma holders. It's all well and good to be pissed off at rent seeking credential granting institutions and the employers that lazily rely on them, but that's no excuse for repeating false information that only leads kids astray.
- hiram112 11y ago
  First of all, I'm not so much interested in raw salary as I am with net worth. If Sociologist Jane at 45 years old makes $50K, and pays $10K in loans each year, is she better off than Plumber Joe who makes $35K a year, owns his house, and earns $10K in dividends. How bout 20 years later? Your statistics are also assuming that it is the college degree itself that is producing the difference in income, and not the individual. As politically incorrect as it is to say, a good portion of the non-bachelor degree population would not earn much anyway - 'urban' with minimal basic education, immigrants without language skills, low IQ, disabled, etc. Find me a study based on IQ - one in which similarly intelligent persons are matched on income (not salary) at varying ages, and I'm guessing that in the future, many in the middle IQ range will not benefit from their liberal arts degree.

bradleyjg 11y ago

As of 2013, the median earnings for full time workers 25-32 with just a high school diploma was $28,000 and they had a 12.2% unemployment rate. For those with a bachelor's degree, it was $45,500 and the unemployment rate was 3.8%. Those are medians, not averages. Things are only getting worse for high school diploma holders. It's all well and good to be pissed off at rent seeking credential granting institutions and the employers that lazily rely on them, but that's no excuse for repeating false information that only leads kids astray.

hiram112 11y ago
First of all, I'm not so much interested in raw salary as I am with net worth. If Sociologist Jane at 45 years old makes $50K, and pays $10K in loans each year, is she better off than Plumber Joe who makes $35K a year, owns his house, and earns $10K in dividends. How bout 20 years later? Your statistics are also assuming that it is the college degree itself that is producing the difference in income, and not the individual. As politically incorrect as it is to say, a good portion of the non-bachelor degree population would not earn much anyway - 'urban' with minimal basic education, immigrants without language skills, low IQ, disabled, etc. Find me a study based on IQ - one in which similarly intelligent persons are matched on income (not salary) at varying ages, and I'm guessing that in the future, many in the middle IQ range will not benefit from their liberal arts degree.