What’s worth more: A UGA or Tech degree?
The U.S. News & World Report college ratings are out today, and Georgia schools retained their rankings from last year for the most part.
I think the rankings influence where students go to college. (I also think many students are influenced by the “Colleges that Change Lives” franchise.)
Many people dismiss college status as a factor, but there’s evidence that where you go to school impacts how much you earn.
PayScale Inc., which compiles compensation data, says the median starting salary for Ivy League graduates is about 30 percent higher than that of liberal-arts college graduates. However, the study doesn’t address whether that pay differential is the result of a better education, or simply because the Ivies attract higher-achieving students in the first place. (I would also ask whether the Ivies attract better connected kids; it’s easier to end up at Goldman Sachs if your mother worked there.)
In its 2009 report, PayScale says the median starting salary for a University of Georgia graduate was $43,900, compared to $60,00 for a Harvard grad, $58,900 for a Georgia Tech grad, and $50,600 for an Emory grad.
I am sorry to report that PayScale also lists degrees that pay you back and teaching and journalism offer some of the lowest returns. The big money is in the STEM fields; science, technology, engineering and math.
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115 comments Add your comment
Lee
August 20th, 2009
11:39 am
“In its 2009 report, PayScale says the median starting salary for a University of Georgia graduate was $43,900, compared to $60,00 for a Harvard grad, $58,900 for a Georgia Tech grad, and $50,600 for an Emory grad.”
That’s comparing apples to oranges, don’t you think?
How about comparing a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Ga Tech, Auburn, and Univ of Ala for example. Then you might get a valid comparison.
For the most part, after you land your first job, where you went to school becomes less and less relevant over time.
Reality 2
August 20th, 2009
11:56 am
I agree with Lee. I don’t think a math teacher from GA Tech (is there any???) will get paid any more than one from UGA (or Harvard for that matter). Just comparing averages is purely nonsense.
LJ
August 20th, 2009
12:47 pm
A problem I have with these comparisons is that they don’t seem to consider cost of living. For example, Harvard grads might be more likely to stay in the Boston area, where starting salaries are higher on the whole than they would be for a UGA grad employed anywhere in Georgia. It seems like this scale needs some normalization.
It should also be noted that the big money in the STEM fields is in industry, not in academia.
Spurious Figures
August 20th, 2009
1:16 pm
There’s no way the overall average starting salary for Emory grads is $50K. (The UGA figure seems inflated, too.) Really, only Wall Street analysts, management consultants, and engineers (i.e., most Tech grads) make that much money fresh out of college. I graduated from Emory not long ago and didn’t know anyone in my class–save for the b-schoolers who landed finance jobs in NYC–who was offered $50K to begin.
WOW...
August 20th, 2009
1:20 pm
…I could have written the first four posts – and I thought I was so smart!!!!!
KennyBouy
August 20th, 2009
1:22 pm
50k/yr in NYC….the bum pushing the shopping basket down the street is living better than you….
DB
August 20th, 2009
1:22 pm
Well, there aren’t too many music majors at Georgia Tech, and there aren’t too many electrical engineering majors at UGA — so it’s hard to compare, isn’t it? I would expect that a hard-science job would probably command more bucks up front than an English or psychology major . . .
Lynn43
August 20th, 2009
1:25 pm
This is like, as so many do, compare states education systems on the basis of SAT scores. In some states only a few hundred (in the entire state)who are going to colleges outside their states and who are usually in the top 10% of their classes take the SAT. In many states (Georgia) every Tom, Dick, and Harry are encouraged to and take the test. If all states compared only the scores of the top 10% of those taking the test, a much better comparison would result.
Jeremy
August 20th, 2009
1:27 pm
The salary figures were not an average (or mean), but the median (middle value of the sample, 50th percentile).
These figures as a median might even make less sense.
ACCTDAWG
August 20th, 2009
1:27 pm
Yeah, its completely apples to oranges. How about school-to-school comparisons? That is, compare UGA accounting grads to Tech accounting grads and you will surely get different numbers (with of course a spread in favor of UGA). Then again you may compare say a biomedical engineering major from UGA with a biomedical engineering major from Tech and get a spread in favor of Tech.
Starting salaries are almost a worthless comparison anyway. Some of the engineering-type jobs have a high starting salary, but don’t really have a great long-term earning power curve. Starting at $60,000 is nice, but its not so nice when you never really have the chance to reach $100,000. I may start at $53,000, but I would LOVE to see the comparison in 5 years….
GTGrad
August 20th, 2009
1:28 pm
I agree that it’s too hard to compare a UGA degree to a GT degree salary wise because engineers start off at higher pay scale. I will say that the GT degree is very well respected, especially in Atlanta. And even though once you get hired it’s up to you how far you want to go in your job, it’s nice knowing 10 years after I “got out” of GT, people still have great respect for my school when I tell them where I went.
Native
August 20th, 2009
1:28 pm
As stted above it is apples and oranges. GT has fewer management and liberal arts major so naturally a school graduating mostly engineers will have a higher salary. As a former GT student I recommend getting an engineering degree from another school, not because of the quality of education but because of the quality of student life and your experience as a college student.
DGTech
August 20th, 2009
1:29 pm
So basically UGA still sucks and at GT we get the best of both worlds!!
Pierce
August 20th, 2009
1:30 pm
Reality 2, to answer your question, yes, there are math teachers from Ga Tech; my sister-in-law is one. But you have a valid arguement in your case. Because teaching is, for the most part, a regulated profession, basing pay on tenure and ‘level’ of education (in contrast to place of education,) it would be hard to relate university to pay grade.
read n black
August 20th, 2009
1:31 pm
Ho dit up! Dem big beefy boys from da UGA’s makes mo $$ in da pros (NF of L) dan dem girlz at da T! Fo reel!
GTGrad
August 20th, 2009
1:36 pm
ACCTDAWG,
There is a study out there showing mid-career salaries and top average salaries as well and GT still came out ahead. The great thing about engineering jobs is you can make $60,000 out of college and earn a comfortable living the rest of your life without really trying. Or with some initiative you can go on to be an engineering manager, operations director, a private consultant, etc. and earn the same if not more than finance people from UGA.
It is very naive to say that engineers don’t have the chance to make six figures, it is just that some engineers are so introverted that they are happy with sitting in a cubicle doing CAD their whole life.
Spurious Figures
August 20th, 2009
1:39 pm
@KennyBouy
Well, the first-year i-banking analysts I knew made $50-60K base PLUS a (now infamous) year-end bonus of about $60-80K at the time. Not bad for a 23-year-old–in any city.
ACCTDAWG
August 20th, 2009
1:46 pm
GTGrad:
Sorry for the generalization. You are right, there are people that move into management positions that would certainly have great earning power. I was thinking more along the lines of Joe Smith Engineer. You did kind prove my point with your introverted engineer comment. Like ANY (and ALL) professions, the people that are able to step out and network/socialize/communicate are usually the ones that move up the fastest.
Springs
August 20th, 2009
1:48 pm
I guarantee you that most of the people who are bashing this article and calling it apple and oranges go/went to UGA.
Nikita
August 20th, 2009
1:48 pm
Keep in mind that UGA graduates very few engineers, and those in tangential fields, and a lot of musicians, artists, liberal arts majors, and so on. So that average salary is not based on comparable student makeup.
Also,students originating in an urban location and going to an urban location will see higher salaries.
Gary
August 20th, 2009
1:53 pm
The assessment is pretty much worthless because of the many liberal arts degrees offered at Georgia that are not offered at Tech. You can get many different degrees in Language, Music, and Art at Georgia. These are not going to be hgih paying professions, but I doubt anyone would consider these majors to be particularly easy. If UGA was limited to Law and Business the way Tech is limited in its fields of studies the numbers would be far different. Try majoring in Latin and making 60k out the door. Probably not going to happen. However, most people would not be able complete the work necessary for this degree any easier that many of the more lucrative fields. Apples and Oranges.
Angry_Bmed_Grad
August 20th, 2009
1:54 pm
Biomedical Engineering at Tech is completely worthless. There is no way of getting a job when you graduate (and I had a 3.83 GPA). I don’t plan on donating to the depressing school either.
ACCTDAWG
August 20th, 2009
1:56 pm
Springs:
That is probably (if not absolutely) true. I would venture to say that its not the people on the lower end of the salary scale that are complaining though. Its the people that are closer to the top, but that are dragged down by other, lower-paying degrees on campus (that comment is certainly not meant in a negative way). We just want a more fair comparison. Can you really compare a trade school with a school with really big colleges for very diverse majors???
BR
August 20th, 2009
2:03 pm
I agree. This is a stupid comparison.
D
August 20th, 2009
2:05 pm
This is so stupid. You can’t compare the two. I would venture to guess that a business major from UGA will get you far more money than a business degree from Tech (if they have that). Same is true for an engineering degree from Tech versus a school like Auburn. You just can’t compare these things.
AP Teacher
August 20th, 2009
2:05 pm
Reality 2 – Yep, we do exist! I’m a math teacher who received her B.S. in Computer Science from Georgia Tech!! I was a programmer for many years, and became a teacher as my 2nd career.
GTAcctGrad
August 20th, 2009
2:09 pm
I graduated from GT with a Management degree with a concentration in Accounting and got the same job everyone else in the big 4 accounting firm I work for got with a masters degree…just sayin!
Wiley
August 20th, 2009
2:10 pm
D what a horrible example….our business(management) school is ranked higher don’t assume facts. Georgia Tech is a well rounded school but yes on average liberal arts degrees make less money. Yet I know many people who graduated with HTS(history) degrees from tech and make 60k a year starting out. GT has a great reputation, and a degree from GT no matter what the major is valuable.
Real Time
August 20th, 2009
2:11 pm
If you exclude the UGA coeds who are now hookers, the UGA average is about 35,000. However, it’s probably only fair to include them.
Rich
August 20th, 2009
2:12 pm
The study also did a comparison on mid career salaries. Tech was number 3rd.
Native
August 20th, 2009
2:13 pm
Springs no kidding the apples and oranges debate is coming from mostly UGA people. GT never gives credit to Athens. In my 2 years on campus hate UGA is drilled in most of GT’s tradition, from the fight song to whats the good word? To hell with Georgia is a longer tradition than the Rambling wreck.
Yes GT offers some of the best engineering degrees in the country but to compare a Music major, teacher, or nurse to a ChemE or EE is not exactly a level playing field. Also both schools provide great educations in their own fields.
Sam Twain
August 20th, 2009
2:13 pm
Lies, damned lies, and statistics.
JW
August 20th, 2009
2:13 pm
Does the AJC actually pay “mdowney” to write the initiating article for this blog? Pathetic. You have a lot of thoughts, but no correlative data points that lead to any analysis. Critical thinking is certainly not your strong suit; journalism is not in your vernacular.
Why are you “sorry” to report that teaching and journalism offer “some of the lowest returns?” I urge you to consider the economic principle of supply and demand. Additionally, teachers work on a nine-month contract, not twelve months. Make that annualized adjustment, plus an apprrpriate consideration of the benefits, and the field becomes much more level.
Statue for CPJ
August 20th, 2009
2:13 pm
Angry_Bmed_Grad – apply to med school. My neighbor had a 4.0 in BmedE. She says Medical College of GA is a cake walk compared to Tech.
Statue for CPJ
August 20th, 2009
2:15 pm
I’d like to see a comparison of starting salaries for MBA graduates from UGA, Tech and Emory.
Rich
August 20th, 2009
2:15 pm
ACCTDAWG, Why do you thing that an accounting grad from UGA would so better than an accounting grad from Tech? I would think they would be the same.
mdowney
August 20th, 2009
2:17 pm
As Rich notes. PayScale provides a mid-career salary median. It is $81,500 for UGA grads and $105,000 for Tech grads.
GA Alumni
August 20th, 2009
2:19 pm
When you consider that both GT and UGA are in the top 5 for “colleges that pay back” in the entire nation, both student bodies win.
http://www.smartmoney.com/Personal-Finance/College-Planning/colleges-that-pay-off/
Rich
August 20th, 2009
2:21 pm
Nerds generally do better than jocks.
GTAcctGrad
August 20th, 2009
2:27 pm
Rich they are the same I made the same amount starting out as every other 1st year in the big 4 acct firm I worked for.
Lilburn Dawg
August 20th, 2009
2:30 pm
“Statue for CPJ” has the best idea. The only true way of knowing if there is any difference is to compare starting salaries of MBA’s from UGA, Tech, and Emory….and even throw in KSU in Kennesaw…..or Ga. Southern……or Harvard. I would love to see a comparison of the same degree earned at many different schools. This would be the only way to come close to a “fair” comparison.
Native
August 20th, 2009
2:33 pm
Great link Alumni, further proving my point in whatever degree you want between GT and UGA just about any major is covered and will give a great chance at making the most of the degrees each are known for.
I would like to add that most states would combine GT and UGA which says something about UGA that they can be that high without a school of Engineering.
Smart Dawg
August 20th, 2009
2:34 pm
Who cares where you start it is where you go from there that matters. I have 5 GT grads working for me and I make 2 commas more than they do a year.
Fort Worth Dawg
August 20th, 2009
2:36 pm
Don’t forget that most Tech salaries are subject to currency conversion fluctuations in the yuan and rupee.
The Dude
August 20th, 2009
2:36 pm
I made 50+ out of college from UGA and worked for a Big 4 management consulting/accounting firm. Also, there were plenty of UGA grads working for the company.
Jimbo
August 20th, 2009
2:38 pm
Always nice to see ignorance in regard to Tech’s Management degree. I’m yet another MGT grad (undergrad) who did very well coming out of school (in terms of job, salary & career progression thus far), which is a lot more than I can say for the the peers I knew from Terry. Tech’s business school consistently beats UGA’s, if you’re relying on rankings & salary.
While we’re on the topic of stereotyping, I guarantee that there are engineers that graduate from UGA (they do have some engineering majors) that do very well for themselves.
I should be working
August 20th, 2009
2:38 pm
most engineers and accountants are both likely to agree this study is flawed, but generalizations like this article usually have many exceptions.
The Sarge
August 20th, 2009
2:39 pm
All else being equal, in regard to the type of degree (engineering is engineering, humanities is humanities, etc), the college or university from which the degree was earned may tend to favorably raise an eyebrow or two during the interview process. Once on the job, the source of degree would, in all certainty, take a distant second to quality of performance. While fraternal factors may always hold a modicum of influence (the boss, for example, may have been in the same frat as the new guy), the ability to do the job will always be the big hitter. Heros and zeros come from all walks of academia.
dewstarpath
August 20th, 2009
2:40 pm
- In 21st century America, engineers don’t command
the same type of respect they once did. Look at the
comment by “Rich”. The comment by “Real Time”
is probably worse, but what is not being considered
is that there are many more liberal arts graduates
coming out of today’s schools than engineers, due to
the staggering amount of apathy from Americans
towards anything complex or technical. We know
how to be end-users all day long, but most of the
advances in the STEM fields are going to firms
overseas and to foreign-born graduates in ever increasing
amounts. IMHO, a change in attitudes would be more
effective in boosting the tech industry than extra dollars.
Most of the moguls in the tech fields do not come out
of graduate level courses, anyway.
Ramblin' Wreck
August 20th, 2009
2:42 pm
Smart Dawg- Two commas more, huh? So either they’re earning less than a thousand and you’re over a million, or you’ve entered the billionaire’s club. Sheesh.
It’s not apples to oranges when it comes to payback on your dollar. If Tech grads make more than UGA grads coming out (or down the road), you should expect to pay comparably less for a UGA degree. If the costs are similar and the payback is better, Tech is the better investment.
That being said, I agree with GA Alumni – GT and UGA are both phenomenal deals compared to the rest of the country. Let’s not pick too many nits here.