How out of touch are College professors?

[^_^ 5,021]

$60,000 for a bachelors degree is actually not bad.

I got mine at a state school for less. Education may not have been up to Ivy standards but then again I'm not the brightest, that would most likely have been wasted on me

[HAL 9000 96]

250K household income in New Jersey isn't "rich". It is upper middle class, yes.. but not "rich". Median household incomes in the county 5 minutes from where I actually live is over 100K and that's only because of a few pockets of poverty otherwise it would easily be near 200K. You can't be in an IT job where I work and be below 100K in salary unless you're a lowly systems admin or intern or something similar. OK so is everybody here rich? Far from it, because prices of stuff people need (like housing) are also very high.. they go as high as the market will bear, as they say. A crappy little 1000 sq ft WW2 cape cod needing a lot of work around my place will cost you 300K. Property taxes and auto insurance rates are among the highest in the nation (you need a car since the only place the train/bus will take you is freakin NYC).

So judging 'rich' by a number, while I realize it is necessary to keep the conversation somewhat simple, isn't really accurate.

Of course, I agree with your logic. On the other hand, my PI makes that on his own (I believe), and he bought a 3-story row house that I think went for about $750K, plus the remodeling he's put into the place, plus his daughter's private school tuition that runs about $40K/year, plus a rather lush lifestyle. It must be really tough.

[Heracles 417]

Private universities should not qualify for any government backed student loans. Anyone who attends these schools, should fund it themselves or using privately borrowed funds.

These schools are simply billing the US taxpayer excessive amounts to beef up their schools.

Edited September 24, 2010 by Heracles

[^_^ 5,021]

Of course, I agree with your logic. On the other hand, my PI makes that on his own (I believe), and he bought a 3-story row house that I think went for about $750K, plus the remodeling he's put into the place, plus his daughter's private school tuition that runs about $40K/year, plus a rather lush lifestyle. It must be really tough.

I don't know what a PI is. But you're focusing on lifestyle and that's precisely the right thing to focus on. If you take my income tax return and ignore the fact that I live where I do, you might think I'm upper middle class. But then you control for location and realize that in my area my income limits me to a certain lifestyle and then it becomes apparent that while comfortably middle class, I could never be considered upper middle class. Frankly, I think we need lifestyle markers that differentiate between the labels, not income markers.

[fozzie 41]

Private universities should not qualify for any government backed student loans. Anyone who attends these schools, should fund it themselves or using privately borrowed funds.

These schools are simply billing the US taxpayer excessive amounts to beef up their schools.

I don't really follow your logic. There are simply not enough places at community colleges and state schools to cope with the demand. Also not everyone could get accepted into these schools. Private Schools (and again I assume people are referring to for-profit schools rather than private schools) provide a way for people to go to college and improve there employment opportunities.

What exactly is your reason for saying they should not get federal money?

[chri'stina 190]

I got mine at a state school for less. Education may not have been up to Ivy standards but then again I'm not the brightest, that would most likely have been wasted on me

Mine was less too...well free for me and paid for by the guvmint. Are ivy standards really so necessary unless you are going for a specific career? I can't see spending that kind of money on any degree that will not pay well as a career. If some pursue it purely for prestige and then don't even make good money after graduating, then I think that's dumb.

[HAL 9000 96]

I don't know what a PI is. But you're focusing on lifestyle and that's precisely the right thing to focus on. If you take my income tax return and ignore the fact that I live where I do, you might think I'm upper middle class. But then you control for location and realize that in my area my income limits me to a certain lifestyle and then it becomes apparent that while comfortably middle class, I could never be considered upper middle class. Frankly, I think we need lifestyle markers that differentiate between the labels, not income markers.

LOL

Primary Investigator

Trust me, there is nothing forced about the lifestyle. I lived on the same block as my PI for two years on a graduate student's stipend and did quite well.

[Saddle Bronc 124]

I don't know what a PI is. But you're focusing on lifestyle and that's precisely the right thing to focus on. If you take my income tax return and ignore the fact that I live where I do, you might think I'm upper middle class. But then you control for location and realize that in my area my income limits me to a certain lifestyle and then it becomes apparent that while comfortably middle class, I could never be considered upper middle class. Frankly, I think we need lifestyle markers that differentiate between the labels, not income markers.

Exactly. In Atlanta on $100K income, one could easily own a 3300 ft² home on a half-acre lot (cost of home and lot, maybe $380K) and would likely be upper-middle class (on $200K, unquestionably UMC)--not so in Annandale (that same home and lot will clobber you for easily $800K), and from what you've posted so far, Joisey makes Annandale look like a bargain.

[^_^ 5,021]

Mine was less too...well free for me and paid for by the guvmint. Are ivy standards really so necessary unless you are going for a specific career? I can't see spending that kind of money on any degree that will not pay well as a career. If some pursue it purely for prestige and then don't even make good money after graduating, then I think that's dumb.

Ivy graduates generally do very well in life. When I graduated college I got into what I thought was a good job at a good company. It turns out this good company came to our state campus to hire for those jobs. But there were better jobs which they exclusively went to UPenn (for example) to hire for. And when I started I realized all the starting grads from my school had about the same salary. The kids from a lesser known state school all got a lot less than we did while the kids from the Ivies all got a much higher starting salary. Your school does matter but in the end debt burden matters too. It's a tough call.

[^_^ 5,021]

Trust me, there is nothing forced about the lifestyle. I lived on the same block as my PI for two years on a graduate student's stipend and did quite well.

Of course one can afford many kinds of lifestyles living in the same region. That's what defines, IMO, how "rich" one is (or isn't). Not how much you make but what you make can buy. PPP vs nominal GDP is a good analogy.

[fozzie 41]

Mine was less too...well free for me and paid for by the guvmint. Are ivy standards really so necessary unless you are going for a specific career? I can't see spending that kind of money on any degree that will not pay well as a career. If some pursue it purely for prestige and then don't even make good money after graduating, then I think that's dumb.

The government only gives a maximum od $5550 a year in PELL grants. Combine this with state funding and you may go to school for free. However this is income based so if you earn too much (and this is the governments idea of too much) then you get nothing for free so you need loans. Well, the federal stafford loan only covers approx $4500-6250 a semester. This is great for some state schools or community colleges but most going to a private school without grants is going to need some private loans at some point. I saw a list of most expensive colleges last week and it only showed the top 100 but they were all above $46,000 a year.

Dont go to college these days and you will earn minimum wage. They say the average for a HS grad is $31,000 per year but thats BS, its skewed by an older generation that forged careers without college. Its rare in the extreme in todays job market.

[^_^ 5,021]

Heck, go to a state college, get a useless degree (Art History comes to mind) with a bad GPA (easy to get in state schools, grade inflation is a very private-sector thing) and you could still end up earning only slightly more than minimum wage.

[HAL 9000 96]

Of course one can afford many kinds of lifestyles living in the same region. That's what defines, IMO, how "rich" one is (or isn't). Not how much you make but what you make can buy. PPP vs nominal GDP is a good analogy.

None of which are forced upon thee.

Complaining about the taxation on $250K while choosing a particularly wealthy lifestyle in relation to the other 97% of American salaries is pushing it somewhat.

[fozzie 41]

Ivy graduates generally do very well in life. When I graduated college I got into what I thought was a good job at a good company. It turns out this good company came to our state campus to hire for those jobs. But there were better jobs which they exclusively went to UPenn (for example) to hire for. And when I started I realized all the starting grads from my school had about the same salary. The kids from a lesser known state school all got a lot less than we did while the kids from the Ivies all got a much higher starting salary. Your school does matter but in the end debt burden matters too. It's a tough call.

The school does make a difference. Especially in business, secret handshakes open lots of back doors.

[^_^ 5,021]

None of which are forced upon thee.

Complaining about the taxation on $250K while choosing a particularly wealthy lifestyle in relation to the other 97% of American salaries is pushing it somewhat.

You're missing the point I'm making, which is that 250K in Little Rock does not equal 250K in Manhattan.