WHAT IS THE VALUE OF A 4-YEAR COLLEGE DEGREE?

Today, more than ever, a college degree is essential for the future.
A study in the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education (2005) found:

New statistics from the Census Bureau confirm the powerful economic advantage that accrues to African Americans who hold a four-year college degree.  Current figures for the year 2004 show that blacks with a college diploma now have a median income that is 95 percent of the median income of similarly educated whites.  Blacks with a doctorate actually have higher incomes than similarly educated whites.  These are extraordinary achievements that have been consistently overlooked by most commentators....

The new government figures show that even greater value from a four-year degree occurs when we compare incomes of blacks with varying levels of educational achievement.  African Americans with a two-year associate's degree improve their income by only 41 percent over blacks with just a high school diploma.  But blacks with a four year college degree out perform blacks with a high school diploma by 99.5 percent....

Corporate America is strongly committed to diversifying its work force and particularly in its management ranks.  Thus there is a strong demand in the business sector for highly educated African Americans.  This demand tends to narrow the income gap between the races for those who hold a college diploma.