The ROI on college investment

It's a 4-5 year party so in that sense it's very worth it.

Unless you are the one paying.

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Is getting a degree even worth the thousands anymore?

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Depends of the degree...some are absolutely required for employment.

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Companies are not paying for 4 year degrees any longer.

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Yes they are.

College ROI is great if you major in a subject that leads to a lucrative field. Even with higher student loans.

All a bachelors mean is that you are responsible enough to finish a program that last years to complete.

Those people usually show up for work and have some level of intelligence. (Education level =/= intelligence though).

For technical or professional degrees, absolutely. Now is it worth paying full tuition and out of state tuition costs to attend a “big name school” versus staying in state and getting a degree using TOPS, absolutely not.

I make more money on one skill that I learned over a summer than I do with my education. The education looks good on paper, the skills I learned are real-world and in demand.

I went CC for first two years and then an in-state school for the rest of my Bachelors. Went private for my Masters, but they were actually cheaper then some of the other public, in-state graduate programs.

I also went into private sector after working years of public, so I definitely wouldn’t be making the money I do now without both of those degrees. By the end of next year, my salary will have tripled.

That all said, it could absolutely be done cheaper and with less required courses.

I think it depends on your preferred career path. For my wife and I, I think it was a good investment. For a lot of people out there, some experience in the trades would be way more beneficial.

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I think the college diploma is becoming the new high school diploma in the sense that, even if the job definitely does not need a college education, because (I guess) employers want to see that you had the discipline to finish a degree.

So, in that sense, getting your undergrad degree in general studies is fine if you're just looking for any entry level job and need any degree.

If you're looking for an actual high-paying, specialized job, without going to grad school, then you need to get a degree in a field like engineering or business.


And, having worked with college students, I try to emphasize the following:

Are you trying to do something outside of school related to your degree to help your career, or are you just sitting around and doing nothing productive outside of your studying?

A degree in mechanical engineering is great, but if you don't have any form of experience through a job, internship or research in the field while you're in school, then you're going to be passed by by everyone who does have this experience. You can't just go to class and then hang out/party and expect a job to fall in your lap.

Of course, there are still trades that require trade school, so if that's what you're interested in, then a four-year degree probably isn't worth it.

So, to answer your question, the return on investment is specific to the individual and their goals. If you're looking to make six figures and you're a gender studies major with a limited resume outside of school, then you're probably not going to get close to the return on investment that you want.