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> I got paid way more because of it. I can believe it, but that doesn't really tell us anything and I suspect you are being cagy here on purpose. The bulk of

> I got paid way more because of it. I can believe it, but that doesn't really tell us anything and I suspect you are being cagy here on purpose. The bulk of the cost of college isn't the out of pocket expense, it is the opportunity cost. Your time focused on college is time you are not doing something else. Thanks to the properties of compound interest, your time is most valuable when you are young. By a huge margin. So any time not spent making money when you are young can become financially devastating rather quickly. So, yes, obviously you needed to be paid way more just to begin to break even. You wouldn't be able to afford to take the job otherwise. But to break even isn't worth it from an economic point of view – especially given the high risk involved; you could have just as easily ended up unable to find a job. Sure, maybe you gained something out of the experience as a hobby, and there is certainly something to be said about that, but is really beyond the topic at hand. I mean, if you went to college when you were in your 50s, then okay. In that case, being paid way more has the potential to start to trump the cost of time lost, but when going to college in your 50s you are, again, not exactly in tune with the topic at hand.

beej71 2y ago
I don't know that you're right on this. I could argue the opportunity cost of high school was a million bucks, too. Or grade school. Or preschool. Clearly it breaks down _somewhere_. But is that before or after a Master's? I don't have the data. The United States is chock full of examples of people who worked through their college years and are dead broke. So I don't think "skipping college equals a million bucks" is a conclusion that's remotely close to a sure bet, especially if college is offering valuable advanced training. (Edit: college now costs a goddam fortune compared to when I went--that changes the calculus.)
- randomdata 2y ago
  > I could argue the opportunity cost of high school was a million bucks, too. Absolutely. We can go down that road and all the problems that exist there, of which there are plenty, but for the sake of the discussion taking place here, those lower levels of schooling are mandatory (under threat of government force!), so for all intents and purposes you don't get to choose. College, on the other hand, is entirely your choice. Opportunity cost is significant here because you can, without persecution, do something else with that time. > The United States is chock full of examples of people who worked through their college years and are dead broke. And? You can't meaningfully compare yourself to other people - only the other choices you can make. There are no guarantees in life, sure. Shit happens. Hell, plenty of people have attained their master's degree and then discovered a love of cooking and went on to be low-wage cooks at a restaurant. Such is life. But in terms of high probability outcomes, you pursuing a certain career path that pays "way more" was no doubt on the expected horizon, but at the same time so was pursuing some other career during those college hours and investing the proceeds at an expected rate of return. The latter serves as a good benchmark as it is an opportunity virtually everyone has available to them. Of course, individuals can do even better in many cases.

beej71 2y ago

I don't know that you're right on this. I could argue the opportunity cost of high school was a million bucks, too. Or grade school. Or preschool. Clearly it breaks down _somewhere_. But is that before or after a Master's? I don't have the data. The United States is chock full of examples of people who worked through their college years and are dead broke. So I don't think "skipping college equals a million bucks" is a conclusion that's remotely close to a sure bet, especially if college is offering valuable advanced training. (Edit: college now costs a goddam fortune compared to when I went--that changes the calculus.)

randomdata 2y ago
> I could argue the opportunity cost of high school was a million bucks, too. Absolutely. We can go down that road and all the problems that exist there, of which there are plenty, but for the sake of the discussion taking place here, those lower levels of schooling are mandatory (under threat of government force!), so for all intents and purposes you don't get to choose. College, on the other hand, is entirely your choice. Opportunity cost is significant here because you can, without persecution, do something else with that time. > The United States is chock full of examples of people who worked through their college years and are dead broke. And? You can't meaningfully compare yourself to other people - only the other choices you can make. There are no guarantees in life, sure. Shit happens. Hell, plenty of people have attained their master's degree and then discovered a love of cooking and went on to be low-wage cooks at a restaurant. Such is life. But in terms of high probability outcomes, you pursuing a certain career path that pays "way more" was no doubt on the expected horizon, but at the same time so was pursuing some other career during those college hours and investing the proceeds at an expected rate of return. The latter serves as a good benchmark as it is an opportunity virtually everyone has available to them. Of course, individuals can do even better in many cases.