Tag Archives: Career Planning

Cedar Education offers 5 Facts to Consider in Your College and Career Planning

 Facts to Consider in Your College and Career Planning

While the summer has just begun for many graduating high school seniors, Cedar Education Lending urges these students to use the time to carefully consider their choice of college. They should think about what their majors will be and also shop around for private student loans to help bridge the gap between the cost of attendance and federal loans and grants received.

With the cost of college tuition far outpacing the increase in inflation and average starting salaries over the past 10 years, students are faced with a daunting outlook. It used to be that college freshman could take their time and figure out what they wanted to do with their lives,” commented Harvey Berkey, COO of Cedar Education Lending. But now the decisions freshmen make could greatly impact their future,” he added. Cedar Ed points enumerates several important things for young adults to keep in mind when planning both their college & career paths.

1)Only 49 percent of 2009-11 undergraduates found full-time jobs in their fields of study within a year of graduation.
2)The Class of 2012 faces increased competition from unemployed and under-employed 2008-11 graduates and laid-off workers with more experience.
3)The average student loan debt is about $25,000
4)Tuition, room and board at many private colleges is over $50,000 per year and rising.
5)Starting salaries are lower than 10 years ago (adjusted for inflation).

Students and parents should ask themselves some tough questions: What is the likely return on their college investment? What will be the jobs that are in demand 5 to 10 years from now? What jobs will soon be obsolete?

According to a recent study by Georgetown University, college graduates made 84 percent more over their lifetime than those with only high school diplomas. But upon a further analysis of 171 majors, it shows that various undergraduate majors can lead to significantly different median wages.
Petroleum engineering majors make about $120,000 a year, compared with $29,000 annually for counseling psychology majors, according to the study. Math and computer science majors earn $98,000 in salary while early childhood education majors get paid about $36,000.

Students must consider what kind of debt they should assume to fund their studies. Does taking on over $100,000 in student loan debt to fund a psychology major make sense? Maybe the student is better off finding a college that is more affordable.
Students should also remember that when they graduate, they should consolidate their federal student loans and refinance their high interest rate private student loans with a private loan consolidation.