The Value of an Education

Good news students! A new report from the OECD was able to measure how much more graduates can expect to earn compared to job seekers without a degree. In the U.S. the lifetime gross earnings of male graduates are almost $370,000 higher than those without degrees. This is a nice payback for the ever inflating  cost of  a university education. The trend is similar in other countries but perhaps the best value of an education should not be measured in terms of financial benefits but rather in terms of other personal and social benefits.  Knowledge in an ever complex world allows perhaps individuals to make better informed decisions on all sorts of matters and societies that are better educated may be a better steward of freedom and democracy. Knowledge and education however do not always guarantee those benefits, it may be worth to remember that while  many individuals without college education have achieved great success, a few highly read intellectuals have led humanity straight down to a path of madness (socialism, eugenics, etc).