I know that this has nothing to do with the video, but I’d like to thank you guys for being a huge support to me. I’m debt free as of TODAY from $79750 in consumer debt 16 months ago
@@razojacqueline you can either get experience through the military, or the FAA actually does hiring off the street a couple times a year, where they will pay to put you through the school house, anyone can apply! (usajobs.gov)
For jobs that pay well without a college degree, the Post Office is a contender that people overlook. Start as a flexible employee making $20 an hour but then you get seniority and guaranteed hours and can make 70k a year.
@@Oakyas long as you know the risks. Guy I grew up with worked out in north Dakota on a field. Has burns on more than half his body from an accident. He's lucky to be alive and to have a wife that stuck it out with him through all of it.
I got my bachelors and masters in accounting. Started in public accounting at a big4 and now work in industry. Only 4 years of experience and I make close to $120k in MCOL. Accounting isn’t sexy but it almost guarantees a nicer modest lifestyle
That was great content. I think we all owe a debt of gratitude to John Bogle. On owning a business. Somehow we managed a 15 year journey to profitability when the existing plan went out the window (a major customer filed for bankruptcy, long story short, the existing contracts get nullified) and we had to reorient. Then the great financial crisis derailed real estate, which we depend on. When I look back now, I regard it as a minor miracle we’re still around.
Looking back at my education in retrospect, I have to say that covid-19 cancelling student loan interest was the biggest break ever. Glad I took advantage of that! Yea I count my blessings in terms of my career looking at some of these stark statistics. I took the longer route too, but I currently benefit from a tight labor market for people my skill set.
As a AF vet, financially it was the best decision ever. Decent wages, paid for school (and paid me extra while I went), the post service benefits (gi bill, VA healthcare, etc) made my adult life sooo much easier.
Good for you. But it amazes me how I got burned last time I left comment saying I will have my loans forgiveness for working in the VA for 10 years while making 120 payments. It truly proves majority of people are fuck up and why 60% of them can not come up $1000.
My husband and I are both veterans and got our graduate degrees paid for and each have two more years of school if we want it. So grateful. The fact that people will say that it’s ridiculous the ONLY way to get free education in America is with military service makes me so sad.
@@LZ-gv6sv I think I remember that comment. Weren't people giving you a hard time because you were "waiting for government forgiveness"? Don't mind people like that. They're too small minded to realize the difference between participating in the program you're in vs waiting for congress to forgive all debt.
@@pinedreams1That's not even the only way. My wife had her tuition paid for by the GI Bill, but got it completely refunded because she got more in scholarships than her tuition cost.
True, I’m 14 years into professional landscaping work, and some days are starting to get harder than before, but with experience there are opportunities to move past grunt work and into management or other non-physical jobs in most non-college fields
I understand the emphasis on choosing your college major with future earnings in mind, but it's equally important to add some nuances regarding these high-paying careers. While many of these roles do offer substantial salaries, they often come with significant drawbacks, such as demanding work hours, physical and mental strain (for example, in the case of air traffic controllers), and intense competition. Overall, I appreciate the encouragement for individuals to thoroughly research their chosen fields. However, it's crucial to also highlight the potential downsides of pursuing high-earning jobs, ensuring a well-rounded perspective.
They're not saying that everyone should go into those fields, just that you should think about the likely salary you can get with a particular degree before taking on debt to get that degree. If you want to go into a lower paying field there's nothing wrong with that, you just probably shouldn't be taking out $100k in student loans to get into a field with an average income of $40k. Instead you should see if there's a way to get started in that field without a degree and work your way up, or maybe with a 2 year associates degree from a much cheaper community college.
I would probably suggest people get a 4 year degree in a decent field that interests them, then us it to try to join a branch of the military as an officer, Air Force or Navy. Recruitment is down significantly and the officer ranks of the military offer great benefits, pension possibilities and solid career paths afterwards in the defense sector. It’s definitely a double edged sword and it can be hard to get in if you don’t test well, but outside those great paying careers, the military is a great option for some people.
Court Reporting is a high paying job without a degree. I make more than the Number 1 job on that list. We get forgotten a lot on lists like these. We need more court reporters in the field, so please consider court reporting school! It’s a great profession.
Lawyer in big city here: increasingly courts in my county and the surrounding counties have transitioned to electronic court reporting. Most of the court reporters I have known for decades are out of a job. It’s a great career, but only for as long as it lasts.
Even with my undergrad student debt and then out of pocket payments for my current degree program, I still say it's worth it to pay for an education. I'm a self-taught software engineer whose self-paying to complete my computer science degree. So much is said for being able to get a job in tech without a degree, and I did! But the tech job market is _brutal_ today so it's worth it to get that credential. Plus, when I was starting out, I had to accept lower starting salaries because I didn't have my degree at the time. Starting salary has a big impact on lifetime salary trajectory.
I am starting my career kind of late. Got a bachelors degree and did three semesters of grad school and decided to quit doing what I was doing. Went back and got an associates degree in nursing to be an RN. Just finished my first full year of work and grossed 145k. Worked a lot for seven months then did three days a week for the rest of the year.
As always, solid advice from the money guys. Thanks! As far as my kids education goes, I'm saving a little bit for them. But after doing some research, and talking to the counselor at my daughter's high school, there are a lot of grants and scholarships that are available to kids with good grades like my daughter. There are options to also look for jobs that pay for her education as long as she works for them after graduation. So yeah, she will go to state College/University right here in San Antonio TX and the goal is for her tuition to be as close to zero as possible with the mentioned plan. Wish me luck! She is also already taking college classes in her magnet school that is right next to the hospitals, so that is a huge plus too! I work with people that don't have a college degree and the make a minimum of $71k per year plus over time at the post office. You just need a high school degree and not be in drugs and the other basic stuff 👍.
To add to the education point: There is also an opportunity cost of missed employment due to being in school. So 100,000 for 4 years but also could have been earning 25k+ per year so that's a total of 200k of opportunity cost BEFORE considering the ROI on the investment. However, I still believe education is a great choice for many - including myself.
I did my bachelor degree in 3 years and earned about 20k per year working... no social life. If we punch. I came from a low I come family and knew I had to make life happen... where there is a desire to minimalize the opportunity cost.... you definitely can. Now, 12 years later, I earn roughly 120k per year and give all the credit to my education and work ethic. Education coupled with a good work ethic is undefeatable.
@@brynnthompson5366 agreed, good point. I am doing education and I know it’ll payoff. My comment was to add to decision making criteria to include opp cost
Late to the party, but as someone who has been self-employed for most of my life, another aspect of starting a business is the idea of prototyping; that can be to fully write up the business BEFORE doing it or it can be starting it as a side business and then transitioning to it full-time if it works or shows potential. Just like with swimming, start in the kiddie pool, and the risks go WAY down.
I work in IT at a university hospital. My bachelors is in Healthcare Administration and I have an MBA with a IS focus. My degrees got me a higher starting salary (been at this job 20 years now)
I think investors should always put their cash to work, especially In 2024, we'll start to see more market diversification. I'm hoping to invest about $350k of my savings in stocks this year. Hope to make millions in 2024.
Great content as always. Interesting when you think about it. how risk vs. reward tends to be a ratio. Bigger risk, bigger reword, and then that can be tempered by time. As an investor for over 35 years now, the stock market doesn't seem nearly as risky given the time frame. I was too conservative when I was young. In terms of the others, I have seen them payoff for myself and others, but have also seen them turn out really badly. Education is so expensive nowadays that the "investment" in it in terms of both time and money has to be well thought out. It pains me to see someone going to college without an good understanding of what they want to do and is the cost recoverable. I have seen many young people of late go the route of community college for their first couple of years and then pursuing a higher degree that have benefitted quite well from that strategy.
That is exactly what my kids are doing. Community colleges for the first two years to figure out what they really want to do then, if they want, pursue a 4 year degree. $800/semester at Community College vs $15,000+/semester at a UC.
I recently did an evaluation of all the major financial decisions I had made in my life. I have two degrees. One of them was determined to be the best money I had ever spent, the other was determined to be by far the worst. You guys couldn't be more right. It's all about considering the potential ROI before you invest money, regardless of where it is invested. It turns out the world needs more engineers but doesn't need more music producers. Who would have guessed it?
Fun fact about performing artists at 8:20 Brad Paisley majored in music at Belmont and he's done quite well for himself (you can read about it at Jack's on Broadway). But for every one person that makes it big, there are hundreds that don't.
I'm an opera singer, thats what I went to school for - I represent a sort of middle ground where you dont have to be a star to make a living income. It's stressful, lots of travel and inconsistent pay with no benefits, but if you're good enough and know how to market yourself (the opera world is small and everyone knows each other), you can find great opportunities. Very fulfilling work too! This is not meant to argue with you, just to show there is variety in performing arts :)
The reason so many businesses fail is because they are not started for the right reason, don’t have proper planning and diligence going in, and founders aren’t properly prepared financially in their personal life. Before you start a new business ask yourself: am I truly providing of something unique value to my target community? Can I do something better than others are currently doing it? How much time and effort am I willing to put in to make it successful? Am I qualified to run a business or am I just a practitioner? Is there a way to start out on a smaller scale to prove out this concept and ensure there’s a demand for my product/service and scale naturally without going in to a ton of debt? Your town probably doesn’t need you to go in to 700k of debt to open another generic bar and grill with frozen food and inconsistent service that will make 10% if everything goes perfect
Oil field is really good as well I’m 24 making 150,000. Truck and housing paid for. And I’m also not working like a slave. Just have to know what you’re doing and can handle being away and working long hours. I just work out and educate myself and read threw out the day. And get payed more then all my teachers💯
Re:ROI on education, specifically social services. PSLF is forgiving the majority of my loans boosting my ROI. After 120 payments of $13, everything gets whiped away
Regarding the worst college majors; two of them you don’t even need to go to school for. Of the two you do need an education, social services can be done in less than 4 years. I feel too many majors shouldn’t take a full four years; colleges waste our time and money with unnecessary classes.
The best way to find the value of a college degree is to go to the College Scorecard, look up the college you want to attend, then look up the median income that graduates from your program make.
Love the money guys, came to say that the commercial pilot salary is watered down by low paying jobs such and instructing and banner towing. Starting salary for most airlines now is around 100k. The salaries at major U.S. airlines can top out at 500k/yr and is achievable without a degree
Shameless plug for nursing or other similar licensed healthcare. It's not in the top 5, but I also was never limited on where I could live. Went to RN school in Australia with my wife and it cost us $90K for both of us to get our BSNs. Made 150K together the first year out; student loans paid off by year 6, dream home by year 7, fully vested pensions by year 10, and x1 retired stay at home dad (me) by year 13. Our combined income had nearly doubled by year 10 and we only worked for one employer. All this and we never exceeded working 60 hrs a week combined in a small, rural town, with clean air and 14k ft mountain peak views in both the front yard and backyard. It might not be in the top 5, but I can go pretty much anywhere in the world and have a job waiting. Worth consideration if you're an academic and a people person.
One thing that isn’t accounted for with education is the agency it gives people. I got a social science degree at 40 (10 years ago) and have absolutely zero regrets. I was stuck in labor jobs and my body was breaking down. I’ve significantly increased my income and have a far better life. I have zero debt and I’m making 6 figures. Quality of life is just as important as finances and retirement. Stay in school kids. 🤙🏼
What job are you doing now? Is it something you couldn't have done without the degree? The average income for someone with a social sciences degree in the US is $43k, so you're definitely the exception.
@@elmateo77I got into sales for an organization that teaches advanced tax planning strategies to Attorneys and CPAs. The degree got me in the door. It took a few bad poor paying jobs to build a resume but it paid off. I consider myself lucky, but I also worked hard for the opportunity. Opportunity is out there when you focus on finding it.
I'm a law student graduating next April. I agree that you can generally look up how much some jobs pay, but I think it's good to try to talk to someone in the field if possible. I went into law school believing attorneys started around $90,000. Little did I know that the average starting in my area was almost double that and as high as almost 3x what I thought attorneys could make. Of course, in my case, it was a pleasant surprise, but I wish I would have known more going in, it would have guided my decision making if I had the full picture.
Utilies are a great place to make money. Most public power utilities have contracts with unions and are really good paying jobs. In Colorado starting as an entry level operator for a power plant you can make 75k. You can choose different paths from there and really there are quite a few people who are topping the 150k mark as union workers with no college degree. As a mechanic at a power plant I encourage people to look into it.
I understand they're reasoning about keeping your student loans below your first year's salary, but that would mean we'd have almost no doctors or lawyers. First year residents earn between 45-60k. And first year associate lawyers earn 50-85k depending on where they live. So there has to be some caveats (sic) for those type of jobs. Because their earning potential 5-7years later is huge, but takes time to get there.
I've come to realize that money is a tool. I’ve worked so hard over the years to realize that if you don’t make money work for you, you can’t experience true freedom. fully retired with over $3.5million, my dividends is supplementing my retirement at the moment. started saving and investing in 2010 in growth, No regrets and financially free
true but hard, I made a terrible mistake and sold all my position into cash when I lost about 14.5% of the portfolio six months ago, worrying the market would drop even more.
I like the idea but not necessarily at the cost of selling at a loss right now. will recommend you speak with an advisor "Martha Cornell Kerns, Her honest approach gives me complete ownership and control of my positions, and her rates are incredibly affordable
Yep! Ex: put 10% down and if your house drops 10% in value (and you need to sell/can’t hold it), you’ve lost 100% of your initial money. Not to mention closing costs, realtor fees, etc. Need to make sure to understand everything about it before deciding to buy real estate investments.
With zero experience, no college degree, and just some work and practice I got into a career being a software engineer at $55/hour. Paid nothing, the information I needed was online for free
Is it possible that spending all that time to become a doctor isn’t worth the roi if you instead worked a $25 an hour type career and invested since age 18?
I went to school to get an Engineering degree, 2020 grad. I have 77k in student loan debt. First year out of college I made 84k a year. In year 3, I made 300k. It is possible to get that ROI. You just need to work a lot. I have 3 full-time jobs. I work remotely in different time zones.
So to make my degree worthwhile based on this, I’d need to make $140k (I was making just over 120k not including bonuses/incentive pay before graduating) a year to make the degree worthwhile fiscally speaking when compared to my previous job. I find it unlikely that I’ll make that much anytime soon, but I value the work/life balance the job I’m getting with the degree when compared to the job I had before I graduated quite a bit.
The problem with their idea about college is that their theory about how $100k could be better spend on a 401k or investment totaling $10mil, is that nobody actually does that. I live in a very blue collar area where a lot of guys my age are working in factories or trades and making anywhere from $20-$35 an hour. But I don’t see a single one of them putting their money into rentals or investments. They all buy a brand new or slightly used truck, they all buy houses, they buy street bikes and go on vacations. The money comes in and it goes out just as quickly. I’m getting a business degree from Purdue Northwest, so not main campus Purdue but still we get the name on our degree. I’ve seen a good mix of blue collar and white collar people in my life, and 9 times out of 10 the white collar workers with college degrees are living a better life financially and physically. Blue collar work comes with shift work, mandatory overtime, and a lot of physical challenges. Even if I have to be broke for my early 20s I’m willing to make that sacrifice to do better later
Do what you do well and enjoy. If you are good, you can be successful in your chosen profession. Most college graduates may not use their major, but they use other skills, contacts, and experiences acquired in college. Most successful people don’t work in STEM fields. Their are many happy liberal art graduates. Does everyone have to be a lawyer, doctor, engineer, or accountant? Creatives add spice to life.
Let's be honest- investing the cost of tuition by working full time in the mill/factory/plant while living at home immediately after high school would put the super majority of people ahead of any college graduate. 25k of your full-time income for those 4 years in any S&P tracking index fund makes you a millionaire in your 40s with that fund alone. Honestly, it's a wildly overlooked easy button and a far greater gaurentee of success than practically any degree.
Yep, and if you put those 4 years into building a career in a good field and expanding your skill set you'll likely be earning more than most college graduates anyways.
Engineering is a great choice as a college major but petroleum engineering should not be ranked number one speaking as a petroleum engineer… You pigeon-hole yourself into an industry that pays well when times are good but lays everyone off when oil prices tank. I’d swap PE for chemical/mechanical engineering because you can get hired as a petroleum engineer without having a petroleum engineering degree.
I can second that as a chemist that works with chemical and mechanical engineers. We frequently have competition recruiting our engineers as oil companies will frequently pay more to start but the chemical industry tends to be more stable. We get folks that can see the long term advantage or have been through the experience you described.
Yes, most people rank petroleum engineering very highly as the starting salary is extremely high compared to any other bachelors degree but no one ever talks about the booms/busts of the industry when looking at those numbers
Why would anyone invest in real estate at a 4% return if you can just invest in the S&P500 without all of the risk, with a higher return, and with higher liquidity?
That power plant operator is so cherry picked. I’m an operator and make $250k. However. You will NOT get this job unless you have a close friend or family member who is an operator already. If you do get the position without knowing someone. Then you almost 100% on a nuclear submarine for the navy.
As someone who has been in the oil field since 2013 i can safely say 1# spot for best college degree as petro engineer is a complete lie. Its very misleading. Yes a petroleum engineer makes makes the most salary. However... HOWEVER. It does not take in to account the downturn years when these petro engineers are making a substandard salary collecting unemployment or working a low wage in a job that is substantially less than another engineering discipline. Id be curious to take the average salary of a petrolem engineer over the past 20 years. I can assure you that it isnt the best degree monetarily when compared to others. Dont know how this data was taken for your source but i can tell you with certainty its very misleading.
Here's a strange risk that I think is definitely worth it: card counting in blackjack. Sounds strange, I know - but it is not illegal, and if you put the time in to perfect your skills and memorize all the information required to play perfectly AND you are able to save up a bankroll to absorb variance, you have the potential to grow that investment by a lot!
Higher end Pokémon Cards when graded will beat the S&P 500 and Amazing Pokémon sealed products cand also beat the S&P 500 too even calculating in compounding growth!! (The more you know)
