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jiggy2011

I assumed based on "it puts one about $1.6M ahead by retirement" and since you won't touch your retirement funds before your retirement (or at least not within 4 years) then it would make sense to take future earnings potential into account.

In other words by going to college you are still "investing" some amount of money in yourself for a future payoff that is presumably better, though of course may not necessarily be.

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It is a valid point. Though according to the data, one really needs a post-graduate education to really see any kind of future payoff. By that point we could be looking at closer to a $3M difference. If you can make that up, then it is definitely worth it, but it is a long road ahead.

With all that said, education is still worth it for education's sake. You don't really need to justify it with future incomes and better jobs. I find it disconcerting that so many do.

Quoting Shakespeare won't get you very far at lunchtime.

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