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Going To College:
Average annual cost of a 4-year private college: $26,070Average time to get a degree (4-year private college): 55 monthsUnemployment rate for bachelor-degree holders, 2001: 2.2%
Average income for
f/t year-round workers with a bachelor's, 1997 to 1999:
$52,200% of Forbes 400
members with college degrees:
66%Average net worth
of a Forbes 400 member with college degree: $2.13
billion
Richest self-made
Americans with a degree:
Warren Buffett U. of Nebraska Lincoln, BA/BS; Columbia, MBA Net worth: $36 billion Source: Berkshire Hathaway (nyse: BRK.a - news - people )
Steven
Ballmer
Harvard, BA/BS; Stanford, MBA, dropout Net worth: $11.9 billion Source: Microsoft John Kluge Columbia, BA/BS Net worth: $10.5 billion Source: Metromedia |
Not Going To
College:
Unemployment rate for high-school grads, 2001: 4.2%Average income for f/t year-round workers with high-school, 1997 to 1999: $30,400% of Forbes 400 members without college degrees: 33%Average net worth of a Forbes 400 member without college degree: $2.27 billion
Richest self-made
Americans without college degree:
William H. Gates III Harvard, dropout Net worth: $43 billion Source: Microsoft (nasdaq: MSFT - news - people ) Paul Allen Washington State, dropout Net worth: $21 billion Source: Microsoft; Charter Communications (nasdaq: CHTR - news - people )
Larry
Ellison
U. of Illinois, dropout Net worth: $15.2 billion Oracle (nasdaq: ORCL - news - people ) Michael Dell U. of Texas Austin, dropout Net worth: $11.2 billion Dell (nasdaq: DELL - news - people ) |
Sources: Forbes,
Chronicle of Education, U.S. Census Bureau, National Center for Education
Statistics
Dropping out of school gets a bad rap in America. Words like "slacker" & "directionless" are usually pinned on dropouts--a word that itself is wrapped in stigma. But the list of the very richest Americans is filled with people who did not finish college.
The idea behind attending college is to increase earnings potential down the road. But for Bill Gates, Michael Dell & Larry Ellison, the ivory tower was getting in the way of their making big $. So they quit.
Dropping out of school gets a bad rap in America. Words like "slacker" & "directionless" are usually pinned on dropouts--a word that itself is wrapped in stigma. But the list of the very richest Americans is filled with people who did not finish college.
The idea behind attending college is to increase earnings potential down the road. But for Bill Gates, Michael Dell & Larry Ellison, the ivory tower was getting in the way of their making big $. So they quit.
John
Kluge used his time at
Columbia to lay the financial groundwork for his business empire--thanks to his
out-of-class activities. America's 12th-richest man studied economics &
nearly lost his scholarship after getting caught playing poker. By the time
Kluge graduated, he’d won 7G--not bad for 1937. And we think that college grad
Steve Ballmer’s
probably glad he decided to forgo his MBA at Stanford to help Bill Gates start
Microsoft.
Most of the #s in the table above indicate staying in school helps people increase their financial success. But that conclusion is not necessarily true. Who's to say that if more of the county's brightest young people chose work experience over the pressure to attend an elite (& expensive) u. they--& the world--would not be richer? Our microcosm of America's wealthiest would indeed prove that to be the case: The average net worth of Forbes 400 members without a college degree is 6.6% higher than members with a degree. More From Forbes Is Yale A Waste Of $? 08.11.03
Wouldn't-it-be neat if, instead of a diploma costing 160G, you could buy a 16Gcertificate saying you got in?
Pay Now, Learn Later 08.11.03
College savings accounts can protect you against tuition hikes. But study hard before you invest.
Do-It-Yourself Aid 08.11.03
How to use the tax code to help pay for school.
Best Of The Web: Education 06.12.03
Our guide to the Internet's most helpful and informative sites concerning school for young & old.
Most of the #s in the table above indicate staying in school helps people increase their financial success. But that conclusion is not necessarily true. Who's to say that if more of the county's brightest young people chose work experience over the pressure to attend an elite (& expensive) u. they--& the world--would not be richer? Our microcosm of America's wealthiest would indeed prove that to be the case: The average net worth of Forbes 400 members without a college degree is 6.6% higher than members with a degree. More From Forbes Is Yale A Waste Of $? 08.11.03
Wouldn't-it-be neat if, instead of a diploma costing 160G, you could buy a 16Gcertificate saying you got in?
Pay Now, Learn Later 08.11.03
College savings accounts can protect you against tuition hikes. But study hard before you invest.
Do-It-Yourself Aid 08.11.03
How to use the tax code to help pay for school.
Best Of The Web: Education 06.12.03
Our guide to the Internet's most helpful and informative sites concerning school for young & old.
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