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According to the U.S. Census Bureau, a college degree adds about a million dollars to your lifetime earnings – compared to the earnings of those with only a high school degree.

But does it matter which college you attend? If you spend 200-thousand dollars to go to Harvard or Yale, does that mean you’ll make more money when you get out?

Robert Binion is finding out, first hand.

His SAT score was 1580, his GPA 4.27. He had no problem getting into college.

“I got into Harvard, Princeton, Duke, Virginia, and then in-state school,” he lists off.

So he had to decide: at a cost of over 40-thousand dollars per year, is an elite college a good investment?

“According to some of the studies and the articles I’ve read,” says Lorraine Hastings of The College Board, ”I think the research is showing that there’s really not a big difference in money.”

In fact, a Princeton economist looked at the wages of adults who, 20 years earlier, were in college – and found that annual income didn’t depend on where you went to school, but how hard you work. “It really depends on how you perform when you get there,” explains Hastings.

She says what really matters is who you are – your talent, effort and attitude. “I think the key is, regardless of where you go to college, is to work hard [and] do your best, so that regardless of what institution you went to, you feel that you have a good education.”

On the other hand, she says, because of their huge endowments, elite schools are a good choice for qualified kids who are poor.

“If you’re a low-income student, you may have a better chance getting an education paid for at Harvard than at a state school, where you have more students that look like you, that are in the same financial category,” Hastings says.

Experts say choosing a college depends on a lot of factors: location, size, degrees offered and money.

Robert chose his state university, in part, because of the 40-thousand dollar annual cost of an elite school. “With the package that they offered me,” he says, “it’s not costing me anything.”

What We Need To Know

• There are several factors teens should take into consideration when picking a college: location, size, courses offered, clubs, athletics, and of course cost. (The Princeton Review)
• Pick a variety of schools to consider: large and small, expensive and inexpensive, in and out of your state, elite and public. (Lorraine Hastings, The College Board)
• Have your child visit the campus of the college or university they are interested in – and talk to teachers, students and alumni. Get a feel for the student life before you make a tremendous investment. (Lorraine Hastings, The College Board)
• Make a checklist of pros and cons for each school. Determine which school is most is most compatible with your interests. (U.S. Department of Education)
• Most of all, when you get there, work hard, study, and have fun. It doesn’t so much matter where you go, but how much you get out of the experience. (Lorraine Hastings, The College Board)

Resources

• The College Board
• University of Michigan: ’Elite’ College Students Don’t Earn Higher Pay or Status
• National Center for Education Statistics
• Quarterly Journal of Economics: Estimating the Payoff to Attending a More Selective College: An Application of Selection on Observables and Unobservables

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