Is the Tassal Worth the Hassal

Is the Tassal Worth The Hassle?

Benefits of going to college:
-With a college degree, it opens many job opportunities in the real world. You have more
options about what you choose to do with your life.

-According to the article written by Hope Yen, the earnings gap that young adults with
and bachelor’s degree vs those who don’t have increased to the largest level in over half a
century.

-In the article, it also says that students who graduate college typically earn about
$17,500 more each year than young employed adults

-It is also stated that young adults with only high-school diplomas nowadays are often
more likely to live in poverty

-At the end of the article, it is stated college students that are employed have a much
higher rate of their job leading into a career or just the beginning of the career.

Negatives of going to college:
- Jason Chura is a college graduate from the State University of Albany who says
that he wanted to become a journalist but states that he would not be able to
support himself on an entry-level salary in that field. Jason has $120,000 to pay
back and another downside about all of the debt is that these entry-level jobs in
his field would not pay his bills for him.
- Shane Dixon a graduate from the state of South Carolina and bachelor’s degree in
biology from Clemson University is another member who posted on the blog “My
degree isn’t worth the debt”
- Dixon states that he couldn’t even make the minimum payments on his debt, he
said “I took forbearance after forbearance. He says that at the age of 37 he cannot
believe that he is still carrying the weight of his college debts.

Conclusion:
Based on my annual expenses of just under $100k a year I need a job that pays an
annual salary of at least $125k a year just to breakeven with taxes. I then researched jobs
that pay $125k a year and then included the total cost of school for those professions
and they are:

Profession Salary Undergrad Graduate Total Cost Years
Physician $180,000 School School $188,000 8
Lawyer $144,000 $60,000 $150,000 7
Software Dev. $132,000 $60,000 $128,000 $60,000 4
Pharmacist $130,000 $60,000 $120,000 4
$120,000 $90,000

$0

There appears to be no easy answer to the question of is the tassel worth the hassle.
Financially it seems like it is still worth the hassle but it depends on what you plan on
studying and the expected pay in that field. For Jason taking out $120k in student loans
was probably not worth the investment. With a low starting salary and the concern
about future employment newspapers and magazines, it was probably a bad decision.
But if you choose a profession like software development which only requires a 4 yr
degree, has a strong future and good starting salary it is probably a good choice.