"College Graduates Don't Think Their Degree Pays Off. They're Wrong" (student loan, 2015)

[SportyandMisty]

An interesting article:


College Graduates Don't Think*Their Degree Pays Off. They're Wrong - Bloomberg Business

Young people with college degrees made $17,500 more than did their peers who had not pursued an education past high school in 2013, according to a 2014 Pew Research Center analysis (PDF) of Census Bureau data. With the earnings premium higher than it has been in the modern era, college degree holders can expect to earn around $500,000 more over a lifetime than they would have earned if they opted out of the classroom after 12th grade, says Rick Fry, a Pew economist who conducted the analysis.

[ncole1]

Originally Posted by SportyandMisty

An interesting article:


College Graduates Don't Think*Their Degree Pays Off. They're Wrong - Bloomberg Business

And yet the student loan default rate is still quite high:

National student loan default rate dips to 13.7 percent; still

[Lowexpectations]

Originally Posted by ncole1

And yet the student loan default rate is still quite high:

National student loan default rate dips to 13.7 percent; still

And yet student loan debt does not = college degree

[ncole1]

Originally Posted by Lowexpectations

And yet student loan debt does not = college degree

True - the gap between "High school diploma" earnings and "some college" earnings has actually fallen from about $5k/year down to $2k. Hmmmmm.

[freemkt]

Originally Posted by SportyandMisty

An interesting article:


College Graduates Don't Think*Their Degree Pays Off. They're Wrong - Bloomberg Business

Tell that to all the underemployed baristas and burger flippers.

[freemkt]

Originally Posted by ncole1

And yet the student loan default rate is still quite high:

National student loan default rate dips to 13.7 percent; still

Yes, very many underemployed baristas and burger flippers among the student loan borrowers.

I'm still looking for some income data on student loan defaulters but government appears to be not very forthcoming.

[Troyfan]

What would the college graduate average earnings look like if you took out the engineering and computer science majors?

I think it's a mixed bag. Engineering types do very well. English majors, probably not. Not to say humanities aren't worth majoring in, but the monetary rewards might not be as expected.

[brocco]

who is "they"? i think my degree will pay off.

[ncole1]

Originally Posted by Troyfan

What would the college graduate average earnings look like if you took out the engineering and computer science majors?

I think it's a mixed bag. Engineering types do very well. English majors, probably not. Not to say humanities aren't worth majoring in, but the monetary rewards might not be as expected.

If you want an apples-to-apples comparison, then weeding out high-paying majors would have to be complemented by also weeding out higher paying non-college-degree-requiring jobs.

[ringwise]

Originally Posted by freemkt

Tell that to all the underemployed baristas and burger flippers.

Buttercup, your lack of good employment has nothing to do with a squandered degree.