Many experts say that graduate degrees are becoming the new bachelor’s degree as a competitive job market places a greater premium on educational qualifications. I stumbled across this interactive from Quartz, which allows students to see the value added from a graduate degree:

Here are the steps for students to use this interactive:

1. Select an undergraduate degree that you  might be interested in.
2. Jot down the lifetime earnings for someone with an undergraduate degree in that major who does not go to graduate school.
3. View the graph to determine…
   1. The three graduate degrees that would add the most value to someone with that undergraduate major. Calculate the value of that value added (lifetime earnings for graduate degree – lifetime earnings for undergraduate degree)
   2. The three graduate degrees that would add the least value to someone with that undergraduate major. Calculate the value of that value added (or lost) (lifetime earnings for graduate degree – lifetime earnings for undergraduate degree)
4. Does graduate school always pay in the examples that you analyzed?
5. Which combinations actually decreased the value of a graduate degree? Why do you think this happens?
6. What are the major takeaways from this activity?

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.