Is College Worth It?

Now that college acceptances are in, it’s time for families to figure out how to pay for the steep bills. The good news is that by almost every measure, a college education pays great dividends throughout your work life. The typical bachelor’s degree recipient earns more money and enjoys a lower unemployment rate than those with just a high school education.

 Additionally, the nation’s employers see a college education as a must for some of the most coveted jobs. Researchers at Georgetown predict by 2020, the share of jobs requiring post-secondary education will likely increase to 64 percent, which would be a big increase from 50 percent in the 1970s. This trend leaves adults with only a high school diploma with far fewer job options.

 That said, with outstanding student debt ballooning to more than $1.3 trillion, many students are leaving college hampered by education loans. Additionally, the mere existence of that debt may impair graduates’ ability to build their financial lives. Some are unable to consider a wider range of career opportunities that may be more lucrative in the long run; others can’t afford to contribute to retirement accounts due to large debt payments; and many can’t purchase homes as early in their lives as they used to in the past. In other words, the college degree is worth it, but not necessarily if you have to go into hock up to your eyeballs to attain it.

Kelly Peeler, the Founder & CEO of NextGenVest.com says one problem is that there is no uniform standard for how colleges detail true net cost of earning a degree. That puts the onus on families to parse through the likely four-year total cost of attendance (tuition, fees, room, board, books, travel), the amount of financial aid available and the money that will be accessed through loans and work-study.

NextGenVest can help by providing key financial aid deadline reminders, form annotations, and on-demand help over text message to get more financial aid in high school and beyond. NextGenVest’s “Money Mentor” will connect students and their families with someone who can coach them through the process. Just dial 646-798-1745 and text “I WANT HELP” and you will be connected.

 At the end of last year, Goldman Sachs analysts said that the rising cost of college and loan burdens, along with the sub-par recovery in wages, has meant “the average return on going to college is falling." That means that students and families must be vigilant in assessing the right school and payment options that will help improve the bottom line.