Advantages of graduating a semester early

<p>My DD attends a private college in our town and is considering graduating in December 2009 instead of May of 2009. She would like to get a jump on her fellow graduates competing for the same jobs. It would save her and us some money if she were to do this. I need to look into healthcare considerations if she wasn't able to obtain employment that would offer health care coverage. If she was not a full time student my husbands policy would not cover her. Anyone have any insight on whether graduating early is a sound decision?</p>

<p>I'd guess that even COBRA would be far cheaper than a full semester of tuition at a private college.</p>

<p>You would have the same insurance issues in May.</p>

<p>depending on the field that she wants to go into, she may not have a jump on jobs, as many jobs are set up to start in July of the year that they graduate.</p>

<p>There might be on-campus job search activities during the spring, you'd want to make sure she could still take part in those even if she wasn't enrolled as a student. If she could line up a good internship during that period that might give her a leg up on other students who spend that time in class, that's the only way I can see it giving her an advantage.</p>

<p>I agree with the above posters --- this is really a personal decision. Good luck with it! And congrats to your D!</p>