A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Is a college education worth the cost and trouble? The answer is a resounding yes. In 1998, for example, the average annual income for a person with a high school diploma or an equivalent credential was $22,624, while the average for a person with a bachelor's degree was $36,720. Over the course of their working years, college graduates can earn well over $500,000 more than those who did not attend college.

Those with only a high school diploma may be hard pressed financially in the years ahead. For example, the earnings of females with a high school diploma have not seen a significant increase over the past two decades. In 1974, the average was $13,891, increasing to just $16,538 in 1998. The average annual earnings for males with a high school diploma or the equivalent have actually dropped from 1974 to1998, from $32,570 to $27,333. The economic message should be very clear: deciding not to go ahead and seek some form of college education can place an individual in a precarious economic situation for the rest of his or her life.

More importantly, many more people have come to the conclusion in this new education era that a college education opens new career opportunities and will give them the skills they need to keep on learning. Many of those in the workforce, at all levels, will change jobs and even careers several times during the course of their working years.

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Expanding Federal Student Financial Aid

Conclusion