<p>Go to payscale.com to observe the starting and mid-career salary averages. Even from very selective colleges, in most parts of the country and in most fields, and even by mid-career, the average graduate earns less than $100K. The average Pomona College, Middlebury, Wesleyan, UVa, Virginia Tech, or Johns Hopkins (engineering) graduates all make less than $100K even by mid-career. $100K starting-pay jobs are not dropping from trees. </p>
<p>I think hmom has it right. The finance guy is the tortoise; the engineer is the salary hare. But if you want to build wealth AND live a balanced life, in my opinion a Wall Street job is not the answer for most college graduates. Whether you are male or female, you are better off aiming for a long, stable marriage to a competent person who shares your values (about money and other things). A “tandem couple” in not-so-exciting, low-stress, high security federal government jobs in the DC area can fairly easily be earning $250K between them by mid-career. That’s in lower cost of living areas than Manhattan, with 40 hour weeks and flexible hours, nearly 5 weeks/year combined holiday and annual leave allowances, and rather decent benefits overall.</p>