Vassar or Notre Dame

D_yer_Maker
Fri, 30 Mar 2012 13:06:05 +0000

You did ask for objective data…

I recall that ND recently came out on Forbes as the #8 school for salary of alumni 10 or more years out of school – ahead of just about every Ivy school. Average was $152,000, I think. Notre Dame’s alumni office made a big deal of it and it’s something you might feel good about for your college – but it didn’t make me any wealthier. In terms of helping someone choose where to attend does it have any relevance at all?

Here’s an overview for 2011 published by CNBC:

[News Headlines](http://www.cnbc.com/id/40703034/Colleges_That_Bring_the_Highest_Paycheck_2011)

Neither Notre Dame or Vassar are on this list – and I’m glad because I’m not trying to suggest that this is a good way to make the choice. But when people ask for objective data, dollars tend to be an easy-to-reach answer. The type and quality of the people you will meet and associate with and collaborate with for the rest of your life is not so easily quantified…and so that gets overlooked.

The reason I like this CNBC breakdown of the colleges with the highest paid graduates is the fact that it establishes no trend. The list is populated by colleges big and small, Ivy Leagues and near unknowns, technical schools and liberal arts colleges, public and private institutions – and they reach across the United States.

In the end, your earning potential is going to be what you make of it. There’s no best choice here and I think the dollar-based objective data that gets tossed around (apart from tuition and fees) will provide nothing more than a false sense of reliability. They are both great institutes of higher learning.