NIU students study wide ranges of topics and have many different careers in mind, but when it comes down to it, everyone has to make money to live.

And with the struggling economy on everyone’s mind, students might wonder how much money they’ll make in their first jobs.

College graduates currently make an average starting salary of $49,224, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers’ Fall 2008 Salary Survey. That figure is up 7.6 percent from NACE’s 2008 Summer Salary Survey.

And those with at least a bachelor’s degree made nearly twice as much as those with a high school diploma in the third quarter of 2008, according the Bureau of Labor Statistics. College graduates made $1,131 per week on average, while high school graduates made $618. People without a high school diploma made $471.

Brian Pillsbury, Career Services’ assistant director for team supervision, said that more jobs are requiring college degrees now than in past years.

“I think you can conclude that it is more important to have a college degree now than what it once was. However, success is not determined by degree alone,” he said, noting that many people with only a high school education are successful.

More and more people are getting college degrees every year. For this reason, it is important that students engage in as many extracurricular activities as possible, Pillsbury said. In 2005, 32.5 million Americans had a bachelor’s degree, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In 2007, 34.4 million had one.

The highest-paying fields for bachelor’s degree graduates in 2007 and 2008 are engineering and computer science. However, some fields require employees to have graduate-level degrees, and these employees, on average, make more money than those with bachelor’s degrees or less.

Junior economics major Steve Morgan said he would like to make at least $40,000, but he also wants the best of both worlds, so to say.

“I would like to get a high salary,” he said. “And I’d like to get a job I like.”

Pillsbury stressed the importance of finding a career you like, because without interest and enthusiasm, it’s impossible to be successful.

Shawn McCafferty, a first-year PHD student in political science, said he hopes to work in either academia or government and would like to make around $40,000 a year with good benefits.

“I know there’s such a wide-range of how much a professor makes,” he said, pointing out that it depends on what country someone teaches in. “At some point, I’d like to work in Christian higher education, which pays significantly less.”

---

Links:

U.S. Census Bureau Population Survey Chart
U.S. Census Bureau Fact Finder Chart
Bureau of Labor Statistics
National Association of Colleges and Employers

All comments are moderated before being published. We will not edit your comments, but we also will not approve those that are abusive, off-topic, attack another poster or contain information we know to be libelous or false.

During peak weekday viewing times, most comments will be reviewed within six hours. For more detailed information, click here.

After submitting your comment, check below for a confirmation message.

• Your name:
• Enter text from image:
  

• Your comment:

* 300-character count. HTML formatting will not display.