College Grads Earn 84% More than Non Grads
- Thread starter jjgold
- Start date
He's not focused on that right now, not betting at all.
jamesy2422
- Joined
- Jun 1, 2025
- Messages
- 2,884
JJ you should go back to school like Rodney did in the movie
that's old data
plus takes over a decade for many of these idiots to pay off the high interest loans
What is it then in 2025 ?
no it's not 84% make more and your son can be in "the 16%"
on average college diploma holders make 84% more money than high school grads over their lifetime.
from 2011 article.
On average, a doctoral degree-holder will earn $3.3 million over a lifetime, compared to $2.3 million for a college graduate and $1.3 million for those with a high school diploma.
Ok gotcha.
I think my son is ahead of the game though, being a minority business owner at the age of 19, which his company has grown 12X in the last 18 months since they started Freshwax Inc.
www.freshwaxsports.com
Home | FreshWax
Discover Fresh Wax, the go-to destination for baseball and football card collectors. Whether you're hunting rare finds, investing in sports cards, or expanding your collection, we bring authenticity, value, and excitement to the hobby. Explore top-tier card breaks, exclusive deals, and the...
www.freshwaxsports.com
Possible - but the numbers are skewed.
What comprises “college grads” ? 4 year only - or are we counting those who went to 2 year schools or got a certificate?
Compare what the median wage is of a 4 year degree in communications, fine arts or some other degree vs 2 year or certificate in building trades. Those extra 2 years cost you 60k+. Take that 60k - sit it in a mutual fund over 30 years and see how much more you came out ahead with that extra money you made obtaining a 4 year degree.
There IS a trade off - and the 4 year degree does gain an edge after around age 55 I suspect. But look at why they do and you’ve got to question if it’s worth it. Say a kid apprentices for 3 years at 18 - making $18-25 and learning while getting a certificate. They graduate to making 40-60 an hour at 21 and those 4 year kids don’t earn a dollar until they are 22-23 and then it’s $25 an hour. Of course that kid with the 2 year quits working around 55-60 - trades are a physical thing and at a point it’s time to move on and let the next generation take over. Meanwhile - people like teachers stick around until their late 60s as they have relatively easy jobs and don’t start making the real money until they are over 40.
That 10 years where a 4 year degree holder works and the 2 year graduate doesn’t is where they split and the 4 year earns more.
But does it really pay off - would you rather be 70 years working to get to a comfortable retirement or 58 and enjoying it because you saved early ??
Of course 2 year degrees in building trades aren’t the only way to go - accounting and RN are both 2 years working programs for example too. RN has similar physical limitations - but plenty of opportunities in any of those fields to take less stressful work on and maintain a part time role while being semi-retired too.
What comprises “college grads” ? 4 year only - or are we counting those who went to 2 year schools or got a certificate?
Compare what the median wage is of a 4 year degree in communications, fine arts or some other degree vs 2 year or certificate in building trades. Those extra 2 years cost you 60k+. Take that 60k - sit it in a mutual fund over 30 years and see how much more you came out ahead with that extra money you made obtaining a 4 year degree.
There IS a trade off - and the 4 year degree does gain an edge after around age 55 I suspect. But look at why they do and you’ve got to question if it’s worth it. Say a kid apprentices for 3 years at 18 - making $18-25 and learning while getting a certificate. They graduate to making 40-60 an hour at 21 and those 4 year kids don’t earn a dollar until they are 22-23 and then it’s $25 an hour. Of course that kid with the 2 year quits working around 55-60 - trades are a physical thing and at a point it’s time to move on and let the next generation take over. Meanwhile - people like teachers stick around until their late 60s as they have relatively easy jobs and don’t start making the real money until they are over 40.
That 10 years where a 4 year degree holder works and the 2 year graduate doesn’t is where they split and the 4 year earns more.
But does it really pay off - would you rather be 70 years working to get to a comfortable retirement or 58 and enjoying it because you saved early ??
Of course 2 year degrees in building trades aren’t the only way to go - accounting and RN are both 2 years working programs for example too. RN has similar physical limitations - but plenty of opportunities in any of those fields to take less stressful work on and maintain a part time role while being semi-retired too.
I think my son is ahead of the game though, being a minority business owner at the age of 19, which his company has grown 12X in the last 18 months since they started Freshwax Inc.
Home | FreshWax
Discover Fresh Wax, the go-to destination for baseball and football card collectors. Whether you're hunting rare finds, investing in sports cards, or expanding your collection, we bring authenticity, value, and excitement to the hobby. Explore top-tier card breaks, exclusive deals, and the...
Good on him - he’s learned a lesson that cost a lot more when you go to a business school. Make your money on other people’s hobbies and interest.
People will always find money for things they find interesting - yes, those things suffer in recessions - but there will always be money in other peoples hobbies. I don’t care if it’s sports cards, gambling, cars or fine dining - people will always pay for what they enjoy and the easiest way to make money is catering to those hobbies.
The problem of course is building a moat around your business that makes them think of you first and not jump ship to the competition the moment they beat you on price by a penny. You can do that a variety of ways - but reputation is the best and cheapest in the long run. Maintain superior customer satisfaction and keep them loyal is key. Eventually you become a brand all to yourself of done right. Hell - how many EBay knockoffs were there in the beginning ? Now the industry is there’s alone - they built a reputation as being the biggest marketplace and best place for sellers by offering free listings and the most eyeballs for sellers as well - plus they made payments easy for everyone.
Amen
(Yeah my son is a college dropout). 
I think a lot of the younger generation is shying away from college because of the cost.
It’s gone up so much the past 10-15 years.
Back in my day it was somewhat affordable. I also went to a state school. Got a couple of liberal arts degrees because it was what interested me (philosophy and history) and thought I might want to go to law school afterward.
By the time I graduated I was done with school. Had fun and enjoyed myself, it was a great experience, but was just tired of school plus I didn’t want to borrow any more money.
Had several friends that went to graduate school and they were coming out $70-80k in debt. Now it’s double or triple that.
The only thing I really regret was always taking the max I could borrow on student loans. I screwed around with a lot of that $$. Partying, Vegas trips, spring break, etc. Fun obviously but I was the era of when you consolidated your loans it was around 8 or 9 percent. And you could only consolidate once unless you did private refinancing. If I’d have waited until the 2007-08 recession a lot of folks got zero percent refinance. Took until I was nearly 40 to completely pay back the loans and I probably paid close to $50k on the $23k I borrowed.
If I was coming out of high school now I probably wouldn’t go to college. I’d go into sales or something like that.
All that said, the one job I had where I made the most $$ that I throughly enjoyed for 15 years, a degree was required.
So college definitely paid off from that standpoint. I just wish I’d have been more disciplined with the student loan $$, but there are a lot of folks in my generation that can say the same.
It’s gone up so much the past 10-15 years.
Back in my day it was somewhat affordable. I also went to a state school. Got a couple of liberal arts degrees because it was what interested me (philosophy and history) and thought I might want to go to law school afterward.
By the time I graduated I was done with school. Had fun and enjoyed myself, it was a great experience, but was just tired of school plus I didn’t want to borrow any more money.
Had several friends that went to graduate school and they were coming out $70-80k in debt. Now it’s double or triple that.
The only thing I really regret was always taking the max I could borrow on student loans. I screwed around with a lot of that $$. Partying, Vegas trips, spring break, etc. Fun obviously but I was the era of when you consolidated your loans it was around 8 or 9 percent. And you could only consolidate once unless you did private refinancing. If I’d have waited until the 2007-08 recession a lot of folks got zero percent refinance. Took until I was nearly 40 to completely pay back the loans and I probably paid close to $50k on the $23k I borrowed.
If I was coming out of high school now I probably wouldn’t go to college. I’d go into sales or something like that.
All that said, the one job I had where I made the most $$ that I throughly enjoyed for 15 years, a degree was required.
So college definitely paid off from that standpoint. I just wish I’d have been more disciplined with the student loan $$, but there are a lot of folks in my generation that can say the same.
I think the numbers might be skewed a little due to high end professions (e.g. Lawyers, Doctors, etc...). The vast majority of rich people (think millionaires/billionaires) have a degree. It doesn't take many of those types in the database to make the number much higher. Similary, the vast majority of homeless (zero income) people do not have a degree, again skewing the non-degree group down.
I would ask if the data has median income levels. That would help offset some of the outliers and make the data easier to undertand and compare. It's not a perfect comparison but it might show closer numbers.
And similar to Djeff's post, the time value of money for those who start earning right out of high school vs those in college who don't earn for 4 years, needs to be considered.
I would ask if the data has median income levels. That would help offset some of the outliers and make the data easier to undertand and compare. It's not a perfect comparison but it might show closer numbers.
And similar to Djeff's post, the time value of money for those who start earning right out of high school vs those in college who don't earn for 4 years, needs to be considered.
Your life is so much better when you don’t have to work for the man
I found that out about 8 years ago and I’ll never go back
Free Sports Picks by League
Share this page
Free Sports Picks by League