<p>the decision where to go/apply is not at all just about the mere eduation but mostly what it gives us back - money.</p>
<p>what would you say, what do you know about the starting salaries? is it for example worth to go to an ivy league college, harvard, pton, yale? what would i earn afterwards, as my first salary?</p>
<p>what will i earn if i graduate from some second tier institution, which is cheaper and less prestigious?</p>
<p>(i am not just a homo oeconomicus, but money is a factor :))</p>
<p>uh, it depends on how you do and what field you enter, and grad school/professional school a lot.</p>
<p>And moreso on work ethic than anything, unless you have connections.</p>
<p>I think median salaries between Ivy Leagues and State colleges are pretty different, but I bet the top 25% of state college kids have similar salaries to overall averages at Ivy Leagues.</p>
<p>I would say that it very much depends on your career choice. There are some things that you can major in in college that give great educations, but in order to get a well-paying related job, you must show some ambition, which will come regardless of the institution you graduate from. On the other hand, there are other very black-and-white fields like engineering where ambition comes second to the quality of the education and the capabilities of the person that they have learned at their college/university.</p>
<p>I think the bottom line is eventually, as long as you are doing what you are passionate about and are usually also good at, it won't matter 10 years after your BS/BA degree where you got it from. You will be making enough money to support a family (hopefully), and you will be enjoying what you do, which matters more.</p>