Look before you leap into spending a small fortune on an associate's, bachelor's or graduate degree. If money is your motivation, learn which ones really pay off.
advertisement
Article Tools
With college tuitions heading toward the stratosphere this year, you might well be wondering whether a degree is still a good investment, especially if you're facing the prospect of going into debt to pay the tab.
And if, as we all know, some bachelor's and master's degrees are much more lucrative than others, which are the best investments? To find out, I sat down with my handy-dandy financial calculator to play with some numbers.
It would be an impressive understatement, by the way, to call these figures a rough estimate. I had to make too many assumptions and leave out too many factors for these numbers to be anything other than a parlor game for those who might be interested.
But what they told me supported both common sense and what I've observed in the employment marketplace. For example:
* Associate's degrees are a slam dunk. These two-year degrees seem to result in a massive payback, compared to their relatively low cost, for a high school graduate.
* Ditto, usually, a bachelor's degree. Any bachelor's degree you get at a public university is likely to pay off handsomely, as well. If you're attending a private college, though, you might want to steer clear of education degrees.
* Some degrees are a step back. Thinking of a master's degree in a liberal arts or social sciences field? Let's hope you're in it for the love of learning, because on average there doesn't seem to be any financial payoff.
* Professional degrees rule. There's a reason why people borrow tons of money to attend law and medical schools. The return for a professional degree is huge.
No comments:
Post a Comment