Many people like the idea of earning a college degree after high school, or perhaps later in life. There is something of the American Dream about it – it’s what is expected of them. However, just because getting a degree is expected, does that mean it is something that people should strive for? In some cases, that is exactly right. Although college isn’t for everyone, and isn’t always required (depending on the career you want), there are many benefits to having a degree. Here are some of the most important.
Make More Money
In most cases, it is the chance to earn more money when you get a job that persuades people that they should go for a degree course at college. This could be your first degree, or perhaps a masters, or even a PhD. The more education you have, the more you will earn in many careers. Studies have shown that those with a college degree will, through their working lives, earn more money than those without on average – around $30,000 a year. For those with a higher degree, such as a PhD, that can be as much as $70,000.
Of course, your earning potential will not only depend on you having a degree, but also on which career field you choose to go into. Some careers simply pay more than others, so when working out your potential future finances, it is important to take into account what types of jobs you can get with different types of degrees. For instance, you can find out what you can do with a biology degree here.
More Benefits
When you start looking around for jobs, you’ll notice something important. Jobs and careers that require you to have a degree will often offer many more benefits than those that you can start straight from high school. Theses benefits include travel, retirement investment opportunities, healthcare, gym membership, and more. Not only will these perks be offered to the person who has earned the degree and is working in that career or for that company, but their families will also often benefit by being. Being able to concentrate on you work knowing that, should dental or medical care be required, for example, it is there for you, will help both you and your employer be more productive.
More Career Choice
There are two routes you can take when you go to college. You can choose a specific school such as the Ultimate Medical Academy, or you can choose a more general college course. It will all depend on what you want to do when you leave school. If you choose the more general course, even if you don’t know what you want to do when you start learning, you will find that when it comes time to look for a job, there are many more opportunities out there for you. Start searching online for interesting jobs, and you’ll notice that many require a degree, but perhaps not in any specific subject. This is because the degree itself proves that you are able to learn both in a group and on your own, and that you are able to stick with a project until the end. Both of these are important traits that an employee might look for.
Even if you do pick a specific type of degree or school, you will still have plenty of choice in that field. Without a degree, you will find your career choices much more limited because you will only be able to apply for those jobs that make no mention of you needing a qualification.
Job Security
Today’s world is not a place where many people have total job security, and even with a degree anything can happen, but there is much more chance of you being able to stay in a job for the long term (perhaps even for life) if you do have a degree. This is because you will be much more valuable to your employer – it will be easier for them to replace someone without a degree than to do so for something with a degree.
This can be proved by the fact that many employers will pay for an employee’s tuition if they want to obtain a degree; it is certainly a valuable commodity and one that employers hold in great esteem because, as mentioned above, it easily and quickly shows them that they are hiring someone capable of doing the job required of them.
Job Satisfaction
Along with a certain sense of security, there is also a lot of job satisfaction for college graduates. They have chosen a job that suits their skills and their preferences, and that means that going to work each day is not such a chore as it would be if they had only got a job because it paid the bills and not because it was stimulating or enjoyable. Being happy at work means that you will be much more productive and engaged, which will often lead to more chances at promotion. As you can see, picking the right job is essential to career growth and overall happiness, so having a degree that offers you as much choice as possible is an important step.
An Investment
College is expensive in terms of money, but it also takes a lot of time and energy. However, rather than look at the money and time it is taking in a negative light, you can think of it more in terms of an investment for your future, and maybe even your family’s future too. You will be able to realize more of your life goals, have more money, feel happier in general, and grow more as a person if you work towards a degree.
You may even be able to inspire others. If you have been to college there is more chance that your children will want to go too. You can help them choose the right thing for them to do, and make sure that they have as many opportunities as possible. The cycle will continue as they grow older and have children of their own, and the more it continues the happier and healthier people in the workforce will be.
