Getting a college degree straight out of high school, while the norm for many young 20-somethings, isn’t necessarily a factor in how much money they will earn later in life. A recent study has found that students who delay their college education are likely to earn the same amount as traditional students who graduate before the age of 24.
The Gallup-Purdue Index study found the annual incomes were nearly identical for students who graduated college between the ages of 18 and 24 and those who were 25 or older. Among younger students, 23% earned less than $24,000 a year, 49% earned $24,000 to $90,000 a year, 13% earned $90,000 to $180,000 and 9% earned more than $180,000.
Older, nontraditional students fared about equally with 22% earning less than $24,000, 50% earning $24,000 to $90,000, 13% earning $90,000 to $180,000 and 10% earning more than $180,000.
Nationwide, more students are waiting to graduate from college. In recent decades, the number nontraditional aged college graduates has almost doubled, growing from 16% during the 1970s to 32% in the 2000s, according to Gallup.
The study was based on surveys of about 7,500 traditional college graduates and 4,000 nontraditional students who earned their degree between 1990 and 2014. The results are part of the Gallup-Index, a joint research effort of Purdue University and Lumina Foundation to study the relationship between the college experience and graduates’ lives.
While a graduate’s age had little impact on personal earning, it did affect his or her well-being, the study found. Older, nontraditional graduates trailed younger, traditional graduates by 3 to 4 percentage points in Gallup’s measurement of overall well-being.
Differing backgrounds could account for the gap. Older graduates have a higher chance of having student debt and coming from lower-incomes, which can lead to a decreased sense of well-being. Many of these older graduates also increasingly likely to be the first college graduates in their families.
Of course, deciding to attend college later in life is a major decision that requires balancing schoolwork and the responsibilities of adulthood, which often include family and other work obligations. Still, this study shows the pay off could be the same for older students as it is for younger students seeking jobs after graduation.
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