Comments on: The value of a college education

By: lorri

lorri — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 20:17:37 +0000

I believe in higher education, however, the way things exist at this moment, it’s higher education just for the sake of it. It is not necessarily the contributing factor in most people’s sucess or failure, but rather a false measuring stick, used to include or exclude certain people from the job pool… It would make sense if there were some better guidlines formed by an association of hiring managers to help people hire employees on qualifications versus degree.
Lorrie

By: cindy

cindy — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:01:07 +0000

I have no doubt that many of the men and women who attend HArvard earn more than their counterparts. You have to be part of a pretty select group to get into Harvard, so either drive, amibtion, or family connections have put those students in a pretty select group to begin with. Hence, the characteristics that are probably going to help make them more sucessful over all in life.
I also think, like some others who have posted here, that employers who take the safe route, of eliminating any one without a college degree, are just plain lazy. Rather then get to know your applicants, or use your gut when you might feel someone is a good fit for your company, just check and see if they have a degree…So many people in California are graduating with degress from great universities, and they are doint the jobs that high school graduates did two years ago…so both parties are out of luck now…It would be nice if more employers would care about who can do a good job for them, rather then what kind of piece of paper is hanging on their walls…

By: Noumenon

Noumenon — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:59:23 +0000

Felix, that $121,000 number you cited is described in the paper like this:

The estimates of benefits of attaining a college degree are significantly understated. The
premium for earning the bachelor’s degree has been growing over time but our calculations
hold it static. College graduates also experience lower rates of unemployment, are healthier
and are more likely to receive employer-paid benefits. In addition, only those who earn college degrees are able to earn master’s, doctoral and professional degrees, the returns to which are
significantly greater than those of the bachelor’s degree.

By: drewbie

drewbie — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 15:52:48 +0000

For some perspective, I went to a private university (class of ’08), and my ~$16,000 loan payment is $220/month.

In my current position, I don’t use much that I learned in college. What I do use isn’t directly from my major courses. However, I wouldn’t have gotten this job if I didn’t have my degree. It’s an entry level position, but my chances for advancement are greatly improved less by my degree and more by the skills I aquired getting it.

A person who went straight to the work force may be just as capable as me, but they’ll have to work longer to prove it to their employer. I’ve already got a written document saying I’ve proved it before.

By: Craig

Craig — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:23:41 +0000

The opportunity cost I grant you, but an analysis of student loans says more about the folly of borrowing than the wisdom of enrolling. Too many kids are borrowing $50,000 for an English Lit degree, and you don’t need an economist to tell you that makes no sense. There should be more emphasis on getting a useful degree at a solid school that you can afford–I’m convinced that _that_ is one of the best financial decisions people can make in their lifetimes.

By: Incentives

Incentives — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 01:51:02 +0000

Another interesting study would be to compare part-time students with full-time students. I wonder if there is any difference in career advancement between these two groups.

By: David Neubie

David Neubie — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 15:03:33 +0000

1. Thanks for bring attention again to the fallacy of correlated variables. Sadly, most people with advanced degrees never seem to get it.

2. I often give the same advice to people about Business School. I’ve seen bankers take a career reversal of more than the two years they spent in business school to go. I advise that business school is only useful if you want a significant career change or a break from the working world.

By: American_Fool

American_Fool — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 03:10:09 +0000

My two cents. Not all college grads have what it takes, but the degree does mean something… I’ve supervised with and without, and in general, college educated kids are rarely useless, but kids w/o the degree are with a discouraging regularity. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve managed non-degreed standouts, and degreed people who definitely did not belong, but in general the degree means something. Now I personally made the decision not to go back and get my MBA – the cost benefit never made sense to me. Now, with all the off-shoring happening (right in front of my eyes, I’ve had a front row seat for the past 5 years)I may find that if I’m layed-off the lack of MBA does end up hurting me somewhat… maybe… but so far it hasn’t. One thing i do wonder, however, is whether the value of a college education is shrinking over time? Is it worth less, adjusted for inflation, than 30 years ago?

By: dWj

dWj — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 22:01:37 +0000

http://www.careerjoy.com/node/377 is the first reasonably decent link I can find — I have to run out now — but I seem to recall that it misrepresents the finding: people who *apply* to good schools end up doing as well as people who graduate from those schools, even if they’re rejected by those schools. Or so I recall. Maybe I can find a better link later.

By: fresno dan

fresno dan — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 21:59:20 +0000

Haven’t we been down this road before, i.e., borrowing ever more money in the belief that our “investment” (housing or education) will always make money??? I mean, most college is paid for through loans, right?

By: Steve

Steve — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 21:30:37 +0000

Degrees and certifications of all kinds, ceteris paribus, reduce the informational asymmetries inherent in the hiring process.

By: fred

fred — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 21:20:28 +0000

A college degree is the minimum entry requirement for consideration for hiring into a office job nowadays. The elements of a college education are 4 years attendance at a school where tuition is charged, plus satisfactory completion of the “requirements” for the degree.

It has little to do with “what you learned” at the school for many/most disciplines. How many folk studied X in school but five years later are doing Y as a career.

And nowadays a BA is insufficient to pass the Human Resource department’s credentials requirements — an advanced degree has been required for most graduates since 1990-95.

Take a look at the ever-increasing education requirements over time (see Harry Braverman’s book, Labor and Monopoly Capital, http://www.amazon.com/Labor-Monopoly-Cap ital-Degradation-Twentieth/dp/0853459401 for more details.)

More interesting in the internet age is the recent article in the Washington Monthly on College at $99/month, (http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/colleg e_guide/feature/college_for_99_a_month.p hp?page=all) where we discover it is in large measure about accreditation or credentiation, not what-you-know.

Dean Baker keeps harping on globalization, but not for labor, so the value of a college degree depends, in large measure, on how effectively the boundaries are kept so that returns to college education stay high.

BTW only about 25% of US population actually has college degrees, so the comparator is median income vs median at some place above the 75th percentile by income, which in most cases links to parental income.

By: Ben

Ben — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 20:02:08 +0000

The cost benefit study should include what benefit that individual is likely to produce over their life time. In light of the recent debacle in the financial area and the failed leadership of the auto industry, including some dollar value to their expected success or failure could give a clearer picture of what is what.

By: Krishna

Krishna — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 14:20:12 +0000

I think the study you want is students who went to Harvard vs students who were accepted and choose not to go. Students who drop out presumably gain some of the benefit of the ‘Harvard Experience.’

By: ab

ab — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 12:43:17 +0000

Felix, your example would make the same mistake Faust does. I’m sure there’s a HUGE selection bias in who drops out of Harvard (Stanford, Princeton, etc) to start their own businesses. I’d guess that these folks tend to (a) have a business in mind (b) be extremely motivated and (c) know what they want to do with their lives (to some degree). Mark Zuckerberg is not representative of the average Harvard dropout.