Forbes – Matt Symonds
“The payoff on a Liberal Arts education is once again under the spotlight with a recent WSJ article that states students who choose elite liberal arts colleges don’t earn as much money early in their careers as those who attend highly selective research universities. The Journal analyzed salary figures for the top 50 liberal arts colleges and research universities, based on data released by the Education Department that for the first time computed median earnings figures for each school. They concluded that top research universities were winning the salary war hands down, at least in the first ten years after graduation. Perhaps no surprise that investment bankers, software developers and engineers are pulling in the best salaries after college. But does the data, which is limited to students who received federal loans or grants, and removes those enrolled in graduate school at the time of the study, tell the full story? After all, beyond arguments about the intangible benefits of education, the high proportion of liberal arts students who go on to attend graduate school can expect a mid-career earnings boost, particularly if they started their career in the public service sector.”(more)