As the price of a college degree continues to rise, there's growing evidence that the monetary payoff isn't quite as big as often advertised. The best estimate now is that a college degree is worth about 300,000 in today's dollars--nowhere near the million figure that is often quoted.

大学学费年年攀升，而毕业后的工资回报却未如广告所大肆宣传的那样年年见长。以现如今的美元估计，大学学历最准确的价值是——30万美元，远不及常为人所引用的100万美元那么值钱。  

"That million number has driven me crazy!" says Sandy Baum, a Skidmore economist who studied the value of a college degree for the College Board last year.

“100万美元都快让我想疯了！” 桑迪· 波美说道。这位斯克迪默学院的经济学家于去年为大学理事会研究了大学文凭的价值。

Baum's research showed that college graduates earn, on average, about 20,000 a year more than those who finished their educations at high school. Add that up over a 40-year working life and the total differential is about 800,000, she figures. But since much of that bonus is earned many years from now, subtracting out the impact of inflation means that 800,000 in future dollars is worth only about 450,000 in today's dollars.

波美的研究表明大学毕业生的平均年薪只比那些刚毕业的高中生高一点，大约为2万美元。根据她的计算，如果加上40年的工龄，总的工资级差将会达到80万美元。但因为大多数的红利都是很久之后的事，所以除去通货膨胀的影响，并将未来价值80万美元兑换为现在的美元来考虑，这个数字为45万美元。

Then, if you subtract out the cost of a college degree--about ,000 in tuition and books for students who get no aid and attend public in-state universities--and the money a student could have earned at a job instead of attending school, the real net value in today's dollars is somewhere in the 300,000 range, a number confirmed by other studies.

而且，如果除开大学期间的开销（如果是在州立大学读书，并且没拿奖学金，学费和书本费支出大概是3万美元），并且还要除去一个学生不上大学这段时间所能挣的钱，以现在的美元看，大学文凭净值30万美元。这个数字也为其它的研究所证实。

But, especially these days, that still makes a college degree one of the most lucrative investments a person can make, Baum notes.

波美还提到，大学教育，尤其是在现在，仍然是一个人所能做的最为有利的投资。

Better yet, college graduates can go on to earn advanced degrees, which return even bigger payoffs. The average holder of a bachelor's degree earns about 51,000 a year, Baum calculates. But those who've gone on to earn MBAs, law degrees, or other professional degrees earn about 100,000 a year.

但如果大学毕业后还能再往前读个高级学位，得到的薪水回报将更大。根据波美的计算，一个学士平均年薪只有5万1千美元，而一个读了MBA、法律硕士或是其它职业学位的毕业生可以拿到将近10万美元的年薪。

In addition, Baum found that there are plenty of other rewards for a degree. The quality of the jobs college graduates get is far better, for example. College graduates are more likely to get jobs with health insurance. And it is easier for them to find and hold jobs. The unemployment rate for college graduates was just 2.2 percent last year, half the unemployment level of those with only high school diplomas.

除此之外，波美还发现学位可以得到很多其它的好处。例如，大学毕业生所赢得的职位相比而言也更好。大学毕业生更容易取得有社会保险的职位，他们更容易找到工作，并不被炒鱿鱼。上一年度大学毕业生的失业率只有2.2%，这个数字只是那些高中毕业生的失业率的一半。

There are lots of other nonmonetary benefits as well. College graduates are healthier, contribute more to their communities, and raise kids who are better prepared academically, studies show.

当然，还有很多非金钱的回报。众多研究都表明，大学毕业生身体素质更好，更加关注自己所在的社区，他们的子女也有更好的受教育的机会。

Other researchers have found that the payoff of a degree is especially lucrative for students from low-income families, since the education and credential give them a chance to break out of low-paying careers.

其它研究人员也发现学历所带来的回报对那些来自低收入家庭的学生尤其具有诱惑力，因为教育和文凭给了他们摆脱低收入职位的机会。