It’s clear that educational attainment is important to increase lifetime earnings.
And, the higher degree level you attain, the:
- higher your average annual salary is
- the less competition you have (more demand for your education)
- the more you’ll make in a lifetime
Professional degrees are things like doctors and lawyers.
These professions are some of the highest-paying jobs and have the highest lifetime earnings.
This doesn’t mean you should be diving headfirst into getting your next degree.
You need to weigh some things out like:
- the yearly income for the degree you’re getting
- the interest rate and monthly payment on your student loans
- the cost of living (if you have to relocate to work in that field)
For example, let’s assume you’re getting a law degree in New York.
You may be earning $165,000 per year ($125,000 after income taxes).
But the cost of living in New York could have you living paycheck to paycheck.
Real estate is atrocious in comparison to the average household income.
Making student loan payments could eliminate your extra income.