Ban Antonio Express-News (Texas) January 28, 2004, Wednesday
METRO SECTION: BUSINESS; Pg. 1E LENGTH: 578 words
HEADLINE: Web site shows the value of education in dollars and cents
BYLINE: DAVID HENDRICKS
Everyone knows better-educated people make more money. Too many people believe, though, they can be an exception when making decisions about how long to stay in school.
A look at wages for different levels of education can vaporize those illusions quickly.
The Washington-based Employment Policy Foundation has made it simple with an Internet site with a simple name: http://www.educationpays.org.
The site features a calculator that can deliver the median incomes for a comprehensive list of occupations for people with no high school diploma, with a diploma, some college, two-year college degree, four-year college degree, master's degree and doctorate degree.
The site also posts how much more people with higher educations can make, the unemployment levels for people with higher and lower education levels and what percentage of workers in each occupation have a certain level of education.
For example, the calculator produces the following results for mechanical engineers with a high school education:
The median income in March 2003 was $940 per week and $48,880 yearly. That means that half of mechanical engineers with a high school education made more than that, and half earned less.
Mechanical engineers with some college, but no degrees, actually made 35 percent less pay. But mechanical engineers with two-year college degrees averaged 16 percent more per year than the high school diploma workers.
A four-year college degree entitled mechanical engineers to 26 percent higher pay than high school graduates, or $12,636 per year more. Those with master's degrees earned $21,119 or 43 percent more per year.
Only 7 percent of high school graduates are mechanical engineers, however, an important consideration for students considering whether to attend college. No mechanical engineers had less than a high school education.
Last month, the U.S. unemployment rate overall for workers age 25 and older with a bachelor's degree or higher was only 3 percent. It was 5.5 percent for those with only a high school degree and 8.1 percent for those who didn't complete high school.
"It is important that today's youth understand that their decision to continue or not continue their education will affect them throughout their lifetimes," foundation President Ed Potter said.
In San Antonio, the message is clear. San Antonio's per capita income of $26,887 is the lowest among other large Texas cities. In Houston, it is $34,916, Dallas-Fort Worth $31,511 and Austin $33,247, according to the Dallas Federal Reserve Bank.
Even a high school student can figure out that San Antonio's high dropout rate is the main factor for its income lag.
One reason the foundation created the Internet site is the effect of low educational levels on employers. The foundation projects a shortage of 35 million workers by 2030, mostly in high-skill managerial and professional occupations.
Parents and mentors should find ways to use the foundation's new site to the best advantage. Money is the best way to reach the attention of young people. It's sad but true that young people will not learn something even more valuable until later in life.
That lesson is: It's not all about money. The more education people get, the better they will enjoy their lives. Money is only part of that. The rest transcends incomes.
LOAD-DATE: January 28, 2004
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