An Ivy League Degree: A Poor Investment



Harvard University. Photo: David Paul Ohmer



William D. Cohan blogs for the New York Times this week about the high cost of an Ivy League degree and if, from a strictly monetory perspective, it's worth it.

"Generally speaking, in order to pay just Harvard’s tuition, someone would have to earn more than $100,000 in annual pre-tax compensation. Then there are all the other family expenses — among them, gasoline, the mortgage, food and medical expenses. Multiply all that by four, and then by other children, and very quickly the numbers get astronomical."

Read the whole post.





Personal Finance: A Rewarding Elective

Photo: Alan Cleaver

No matter your major in college, prudent scholars, I recommend one class more than any other: Personal Finance.  Your high school might have required a similar class, but investigate your college's version. It might cover more or give you an important review.  I took the version at Indiana University-Bloomington as an adult with years of financial decisions behind me, but still found the class rewarding.

Most Personal Finance courses will look at the following:

• budgeting
• figuring net worth
• understanding interest rates
• comparing mortgages and car loans
• choosing insurance
• investing for retirement

It's never too early to learn budgeting skills, but some of the other topics might seem abstract your first year or two in college. Don't worry if you have to put it off until your last year of college when the "real world" beckons. This not-too-difficult life skills class is perfect counterpoint to some of the more mentally challenging classes you'll take at that time.

You can usually find Personal Finance in the business course listings, but if you can't, ask your academic advisor or do a search of your university's website.