Harvard grads earn $81,500 at age 34 – WTF?!

[Anonymous]

How is it that low? Here’s a link to the study:

https://www.topuniversities.com/where-to-study/north-america/united-states/penn-graduates-are-highest-earners-ivy-league

Some other takeaways:

1. UPenn graduates earn the most ($91,800/year at age 34), while Brown graduates earn the least ($66,900 at the same age).

2. The gender gap still exists, with males earning $110,200 and females $76,400 (I believe this is for UPenn, but the article is not very clear on this).

3. The article was from 2017 but says it was last updated in March 2021. So it’s possible those were the salaries in 2017, but even then, I would’ve thought they would be higher.

What do you think? Maybe we in the DC area have an unrealistic idea of salaries nationwide, but I was still surprised to read that graduates of the most prestigious university in the country can only muster a salary of $81,500 more than a decade after graduation.

[Anonymous]

The DC area is full of strivers where people place work ahead of emotions. They tend to be sociopathic in various degrees. Harvard grades are happier earning what would be a meager salary to a dcumer.

[Anonymous]

A lot of Ivy League students come from relatively wealthy families, which means they’re able to take on meaningful work with lower salaries. Or they’ve learned that money isn’t the only measure of success!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A lot of Ivy League students come from relatively wealthy families, which means they’re able to take on meaningful work with lower salaries. Or they’ve learned that money isn’t the only measure of success!

Def not a lot are relatively wealthy. Most are first generation kids I'm betting

[Anonymous]

I suspect there may be a chunk in grad school or SAH with kids, with zero income, pulling down the average.

Public service is popular. Obama was probably earning in that range at 34. Those jobs don't necessarily pay well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I suspect there may be a chunk in grad school or SAH with kids, with zero income, pulling down the average.

Public service is popular. Obama was probably earning in that range at 34. Those jobs don't necessarily pay well.

+1. SAHMs always like to brag about their “MRS” Ivy degrees

[Anonymous]

Sounds like some of the GS12 feds I know. Great sounding degrees, but that doesn't make up for the lack of practical experience, initiative and situational awareness.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of Ivy League students come from relatively wealthy families, which means they’re able to take on meaningful work with lower salaries. Or they’ve learned that money isn’t the only measure of success!

Def not a lot are relatively wealthy. Most are first generation kids I'm betting

You would so lose that bet!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sounds like some of the GS12 feds I know. Great sounding degrees, but that doesn't make up for the lack of practical experience, initiative and situational awareness.

[Anonymous]

I went to Yale, but I bet the data is similar. Among my friends when we were 34, a few were earning big salaries in finance or law. But, a few were in grad school since they worked for a while after college and then went back. Some had finished PhDs, but weren’t earning much as new professors. A few were doctors, but were just getting out of residencies, so weren’t big earners yet. A bunch had started companies and didn’t draw a salary because they were paid out of company profits, a couple came from really wealthy families and did things that wouldn’t register as salary (invested in real estate, worked for family foundations, etc.). Not many were law firm partners yet, but partner earning isn’t listed as salary in statistics because it is technically profit-sharing. I think that interpreting those averages doesn’t take into account that many wealthy people don’t actually get paid salaries, which is only one kind of earned income and one that is tied to certain industries that are not often the highest paying.

[Anonymous]

Maybe they work for Teach for America.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to Yale, but I bet the data is similar. Among my friends when we were 34, a few were earning big salaries in finance or law. But, a few were in grad school since they worked for a while after college and then went back. Some had finished PhDs, but weren’t earning much as new professors. A few were doctors, but were just getting out of residencies, so weren’t big earners yet. A bunch had started companies and didn’t draw a salary because they were paid out of company profits, a couple came from really wealthy families and did things that wouldn’t register as salary (invested in real estate, worked for family foundations, etc.). Not many were law firm partners yet, but partner earning isn’t listed as salary in statistics because it is technically profit-sharing. I think that interpreting those averages doesn’t take into account that many wealthy people don’t actually get paid salaries, which is only one kind of earned income and one that is tied to certain industries that are not often the highest paying.

Averages aren't meaningful. Also, only some go into high earning careers. This is true for every school. Plenty of grads work PT, take time off to raise kids, go into nonprofit or low-earning fields, or do endless stints in grad school (sometimes multiple grad schools).

[Anonymous]

I mean… don’t the Ivies just give you a shot at IB/McKinsey, etc.? It’s not like everyone gets those or wants those. When Ivies don’t have business schools, they miss out on the less prestigious accounting/audit/tax, supply chain management, etc. jobs that provide solid jobs on graduations and good careers overall.

[Anonymous]

The fact that people on this board are shocked by those statistics shows how few people (or their families) actually attended ivy league schools on DCUM. You frickin fakers!

[Anonymous]

I am not sure how reliable this data is. Salary also depends on the major. For example, Brown CS graduates have the highest salary at $141,100 (data from US department of education).

https://www.collegefactual.com/majors/computer-information-sciences/computer-science/rankings/highest-paid-grads/