#salaries #CollegeDegrees #urban #rural #coronavirus #COVID19 #FlattenTheCurve
Workers in Georgia with a four-year degree earn 66 percent more on average than those with associate degrees, and 101 percent more than those with only a high school diploma.
Maureen Downey, education columnist for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, pulled that statistic from a study titled “College Earning Across States and Metropolitan Areas.” She discussed the topic in a June 16, 2020, column.
“I don’t want to say everyone should go to college, but the returns to higher education are pretty considerable in Georgia,” Downey quotes John Winters, an Iowa State University economist who authored the study.
“One takeaway from the study is that job market opportunities for those without a lot of education are not very robust in Georgia,” Downey quotes Winters.
In Winters’ study, those with a bachelor’s degree strongly out-earn workers with associate degrees, with more than 25 percent earnings advantage in all but three states: North Dakota, Alaska and Vermont, Downey writes.
If a young person wants to live in the metro area, it’s clear from the study that getting some higher education would be a really good idea,” Downey quotes Winters.
“Whether to go to college always has to be the kid’s decision,” Downey quotes Amber Northern, senior vice president for research at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, which sponsored Winters’ study.
There are two things at play here. First, kids who go to high school in a small town or county, and want to move to a city, where they believe the action is, are advised to get a college degree.
The second thing is that the kids have to make the decision whether college is right for them.
Suppose a kid has a rough home life in rural America, and has planned to move out of Mom and Dad’s house as soon as possible after graduation.
What if that kid learns that college is either unaffordable, or doesn’t believe college would be a great move for him or her – at least not worth going into debt to make happen?
Such a child should know that there are many options out there that can allow him or her to earn a good income, regardless of education, background or experience.
Here’s the rub: the child has to be open to looking at the many alternatives to college, or even a traditional “job.” Here’s the bonus: if the child IS open, and likes what he or she sees, he or she can live anywhere he or she wants. It not only requires openness to looking, but also the ambition to pursue, even if he or she needs to take a traditional job at the beginning to earn a living.
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A college degree is certainly desirable to have. Some degrees can be parlayed into a decent career. Others give you knowledge that has a narrow focus in the overall job market, and may not convert to a lucrative income.
Also, who knows how the college experience is going to change in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic?
Regardless, no education is wasted. But, the practical consideration to going to college may supersede the desire for a degree.
As Northern says, it’s the kid’s decision.
But, a child’s ambition to get a degree may not be enough. He or she could be saddled with a huge debt for many years after graduation. If he or she doesn’t get a job from which he or she can live, AND pay down the debt promptly, AND save for the future, the decision is easier.
If he or she believes a good job is ahead with a degree, the decision is harder. That’s where an open mind and a lot of ambition could synergize into something really special.
Peter