Is Your Degree Worth It?: Cost Benefit Analysis of College Enrollment in Greater Boston

Presenter

Joanna Lam

Campus

UMass Boston

Sponsor

Dania V. Francis, Department of Economics, UMass Boston

Schedule

Session 1, 10:30 AM - 11:15 AM [Schedule by Time][Poster Grid for Time/Location]

Location

Poster Board C6, Poster Showcase Room (163), Row 1 (C1-C10) [Poster Location Map]

Abstract

As a high school student applying for colleges in the Greater Boston area, why are private colleges the aim? Do they truly offer more return on your tuition dollars than a public or community college? Following the Great Recession, there have been growing concerns as to whether colleges are offering the same path to success as they were before. Policy wise, all levels of government have begun to look at whether the price tag of a degree is worth it (financial transparency) and if a student will be able to obtain gainful employment. The purpose of this paper is to look at the return-to-investment of an undergraduate’s degree relative to their debt-to-earnings ratio (cost of tuition to earnings). The focus will be on 4-year private, 4-year public, and 2-year community colleges within the Greater Boston area. UMass Boston has been selected to be the benchmark institution in terms of creating a college choice set list. Data on institutional tuition and major degree type awarded will be obtained from the Integrated Postsecondary Education System (IPEDS). Data on outcome earnings by major and school will be obtained from the Post-Secondary Enrollment Options (PSEO). The data will be analyzed to compare average tuition, average earnings in the first five years relative to major and school choice, and institution type (private, public, community).  This paper aims to increase awareness of the debt-to-earnings ratio as a result of school and major choice amongst high school students to aid in their decision making.

Keywords

Earnings , Outcome, Debt-to-earnings ratio , Return to investment , Choice

Research Area

Business & Economics

SIMILAR ABSTRACTS (BY KEYWORD)