US stats
Unemployment rate for bachelor-degree holders, 2001: 2.2%
Unemployment rate for high-school graduates, 2001: 4.2%
Nearly a 100% gain.
Average income for full-time year-round workers with high-school degree, 1997 to 1999: $30,400
Average income for full-time year-round workers with a bachelor's degree, 1997 to 1999: $52,200
People with degree on average earn 70%+ more.
Percentage of Forbes 400 members with college degrees: 66%
Note: For the self-made billionaires, this number is higher as thie list also contains billionaires who inherited their money.
Average net worth of a Forbes 400 member with a college degree: $2.13 billion
Average net worth of a Forbes 400 member without college degree: $2.27 billion
(Note: The results are highly warped here because Bill Gates (#1 richest), along with his other friends (Paul Allen, Michael Dell, Larry Ellison) was considered a dropout in the stats. However, note the fact Bill Gates was admitted to what some would say is the world's best university e.g. "Harvard", tells you his way of thinking ahead. Obviously, with Microsoft growing so fast, he decided to "defer" his university degree to focus on his passion. Bill Gates finally finished and received his Harvard degree in 2007.
The other dropouts who are amongst the world's richest 20 are:
Paul Allen (Microsoft Founder), Larry Ellison (Oracle), Michael Dell (Dell Computers). Note that all of these 3 individuals "attended" university, only to drop out because their businesses were doing so well.
For example,
Michael Dell: While at the University of Texas at Austin, he started a computer company called PC's Limited in room 2713 of twenty-seven story residence hall Dobie Center. The company became successful enough that, with the help of an additional loan from his grandparents, Dell dropped out of the university at the age of 19 to run PC's Limited, which later became the famous Dell Computer Corporation, then ultimately Dell, Inc.
Source -
http://www.forbes.com/2003/07/28/cx_dd_0728mondaymatch.html
What do all of these super successful people tell us? That university is the way forward. Look at recent day billionaires, e.g. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg (youngest 25 year old billionaire), who is also a Harvard dropout, he only dropped/deferred because Facebook was growing so big!
If you view Forbes 2009 list. Most of the top 20 richest, including recent additions, Larry Page & Sergey Brin (Google Founders) went to Stanford University and Carlos Slim (#3rd richest in the world, Mexican Telco giant) went to Top tier-1 universities. Also, their mother and fathers were maths professors (referring to Google founders). I guess it runs in the family :|
You'll also find that majority of Fortune 500 companies employ CEOs with university degrees. From Eric E. Schmidt (Google CEO) to Indra Nooyi (CEO of Pepsi - Yale graduate), to Steven Spielberg (DreamWorks). To get right to the top, you need the paper and knowledge. Otherwise, alternative methods are being born to rich parents, like Paris Hilton.
Which is unfortunate, because his great grandfather, Conrad Hilton who founded the Hilton Hotels brand, received 6 honorary degrees from various universities... Only to get the named tarnished by Paris Hilton. lol
