Tuition paid compared to income earned (degrees, costs, state school, salaries)

[Gatornation]

Colleges That Help Grads Get Top Salaries - SmartMoney.com (http://www.smartmoney.com/borrow/student-loans/which-colleges-help-their-grads-get-top-salaries-1312402692380/?link=SM_hp_featStory - broken link)

A much needed comparison. Has some holes in the logic but mostly sound.

[harhar]

Those are some crazy prices just for an undergrad.

Yes I realize that you're often paying for the "better" instruction, school name and connections but still...

Even though I graduated almost 8 years ago prices at my school are still about the same and relatively inexpensive.

At my old state school for 4 years it costs $18,000 and starting pay is about $42,000

After 10 years and after school is paid for you'd have "made" $402,000; assuming no change to income.

Contrast that with #1 on the list (GIT) where you'd "make" $485,190. So about $85,000 more after 10 years.

I'd argue that after 3-5 years your school doesn't matter and from there either graduate could make a lot more or a lot less.

Again costs could also be offset by either side by transferring your 3rd or 4th year.

So really I think there is less difference than presented here.

What is important here is the contrast between these choices and a high school graduate. For argument's sake, let's assume that HS grads make $25,000yr on average. Now that's almost half after ten years what the #1 college graduate would make.

Of course, times are a bit different today and college degrees maybe devalued, but it doesn't mean the earnings compared to a HS diploma is.

[Katet]

Great article. Thanks.