Make more money with a higher education

Success: It’s everywhere

More education equals more money, right? Generally speaking, yes. The more education you have, the more earning potential you have. Someone with a bachelor’s degree, on average, earns half a million dollars more in their lifetime than someone with an associate’s degree, and a million more than someone with less than a high school education. The payoffs can be huge.

Naysayers might suggest that the cost of a college education outweighs the benefits. It can look daunting, especially when you start hearing about colleges that cost upwards of $100,000 to attend. But that’s the exception rather than the norm. Consider this: The cost of a two-year college education averaged just over $4,500 in 2006-07. The cost of a four-year education at a public college or university averaged just over $23,000. So while a bachelor’s degree might cost a good chunk of change up front, the extra million dollars you’ll see in income because you earned a degree makes the investment pretty hard to pass up. Even if you attend a private four-year university, where tuition averaged nearly $89,000 in 2006-07, you’ll still come out ahead by over $900,000 in lifetime earnings.

Erin O’Rourke went back to school twice for additional degrees in accounting, and each time helped her earn more money. After earning an associate’s degree, she doubled her salary, and after going back for a bachelor’s degree, it went up another 60%. She worked for two more years and then started studying online through DeVry University for a master’s in finance. Since completing the program, Erin’s salary has increased 75%.

She says a higher salary has been one of her primary motivating factors in going after additional degrees. “I have used my degrees to the fullest and will continue to do so,” Erin says, noting that she also studied information systems for a minor and pursues continuing education certifications. “I would never have let myself sit and not earn more if I could help it,” she adds. “I have kids to feed.”

There is an obvious financial incentive to get a college degree, but an education is also important when you’re passionate about a particular job. It provides with you valuable information about your field of interest and can offer you a chance to move up in your career.

After registered nurse (RN) Christine Zang went back to school to earn her bachelor of science in nursing (BSN), the financial rewards weren’t immediate: Her salary increased by just 1% after she graduated. But, the new degree made her eligible for more administrative jobs and leadership positions, all of which offered better salaries.

“The BSN opened a lot of doors for me,” Christine said. “As an RN without a bachelor’s degree, I worked long shifts in a hospital. Once I had the BSN, I was able to get a job outside of the hospital with a higher salary, and also a schedule that worked much better for my family and me.”

Christine’s payoff wasn’t immediate, but in the long-run, having the BSN gave her a broader range of career opportunities, which was most important to her. “I was able to explore other areas of nursing that had previously been off-limits,” she notes. The financial gains she saw after she changed jobs weren’t a bad bonus either.

So many careers can be boosted with an education, and for a small investment of time and money, the rewards are bountiful. With online degree programs bringing education to your fingertips, it seems smarter than ever to earn a college degree and experience both career and financial success.