Is a college degree worth it?

Despite what you might be hearing or reading in the popular press these days, the answer is yes. In fact, the case can be made that a college degree is more valuable today than ever before.

A report published today by the Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce “The College Advantage: Weathering the Economic Storm” makes the case. The authors argue that a college degree has served “as protection for Americans seeking shelter during a tough economic storm.”

Among their interesting pieces of evidence to back this claim –

• Although we have heard much about the challenges for young college graduates entering the job market, unemployment for all those with college degrees has remained under 5% throughout the recession.
• Workers with high school degrees or less bore the brunt of the recession’s job losses while the recovery has resulted in job gains mostly for those with post-secondary education.
• The wage premium of a college degree continues to increase. The average earnings for someone with a Bachelor’s degree is now more than twice that of a high school grad.

You can read the GU study at http://cew.georgetown.edu/collegeadvantage/.