Forget Harvard and a 4-Year Degree, You Can Make More as a Plumber in the Long Run, Says Prof. Kotlikoff

The value of an education is a lot like a race car driver. While a fast car helps, it's always the skill of the driver that wins a race. Whether one's education merely introduces the fast car, or imparts the skills necessary to drive it, depends more on the individual than institution.

The value of a college education has been a hot topic of discussion here at Tech Ticker. Now there’s more fodder for debate.

A new study from Princeton University shows that expensive college degrees are not necessarily worth the lofty price tags in the long run when you take into account one's natural ability.

Laurence Kotlikoff, professor of economics at Boston University agrees that an expensive education just isn't worth it -- much to his chagrin of course because tuition and fees at Boston University totalled $39,314 for 2010-11.

With unemployment still about 9 percent, on average, for college graduates under the age of 25, and total student-loan debt now topping that of credit card debt in this country, he tells Aaron in the accompanying clip, “If you think of education as solely a monetary investment, if we are not thinking about all the other benefits from education like learning things, and getting to hang out with me, and also just becoming a more cultured person, then we have to look at this very carefully.”

Source: finance.yahoo.com