Why You Should Consider Going Back to School

In the United States nearly 40 percent of working-aged Americans hold a college degree. That means that almost 60 percent don’t have a degree. This can be an alarming statistic for a lot of people. There is a trend of people getting more degrees than they did before. People are increasingly getting more education as new generations come of age. If you have already come and gone from college. Regardless of how you ended your college journey, you can gain lots of permanent value from returning to college at any point. Here are a few reasons why you can’t afford not to and how to go about it.

Why You Need It

A lot of people talk about why you may or may not need college. There is a fair number of people who think that college is a waste of time and that it doesn’t really give you any benefit that couldn’t get just working in a job for that time. There is heavy anecdotal evidence for both, but we want to explore more proven reason why you should go back. Data has shown that the more formal education that you have the more money you can realistically expect to make. In 2018 people with a 2-year degree made an average of $1,198 a week. While those with only a high school diploma made an average of $730 a week. This adds up to over a million dollars’ worth of earnings over a lifetime. This number only increases as you get more education. If making more money is something that you are interested in, consider returning to college. Another study found that college graduates have a decreased mortality rate by 15 to 19 percent by reducing deaths from heart disease and even cancer.

There is a common belief that college is the opposite of entrepreneurship and blue color work. The common narrative is that you either go to college and get a job or you go start your own company or if you are less ambitious you will work in a blue-collar job. This is not necessarily true. While having a degree does increase your likelihood of making more money and reduce the risk of unemployment. About 7 out of 10 millionaires are entrepreneurs and many of them went to college. While it is true that many people who work blue collar type jobs are often done by non-college graduates, there are countless non college graduates who work very high-level jobs in many corporate jobs. Having a degree increases your chances, not necessarily defines your future.

How You Can Do It

Returning to college can seem like a daunting and impossible task. There are a few options to make things a little simpler. This obviously matters how far along you have been in college before. If you went right from high school into the work force, then it will be different if you are going back for a masters. If you have no previous education, then it is ideal to take advantage of going to a community college. They usually have easier and faster options to so that you can get through the basic generals’ classes. If you want to go back and get a master’s degree or even get a bachelor’s degree. A community college will not accomplish the same result. You will need to get involved with a university at some level. A really common answer for a lot of people is getting their credits finished with online classes so that they don’t have to commit to attending class or moving closer to the university. It can be difficult to balance all of different classes if you are already working a decent job.

Once you have the degree, lots of jobs will actually cover the cost of the degree because you are now more valuable to them. Many workplaces can either negotiate a tuition reimbursement and most people get a different job after they have their degree. Once they have the degree it is very common to have your tuition paid off as a negotiation for your new job.

In the end it is certainly worth the trouble and there are a few ways that you can get it and get the expenses covered.