In the US the difference is really substantial (and of course, it depends on which degree) but it seems like income inequality is much less in Europe overall.

9 comments

  1. It doesn’t make much of a difference in the UK unless you’re going into a specialised field where the degree is required — and specialised fields generally earn more anyway. For everything else, it’s experience or your talents that matter, not the letters, or the lack of them, after your name.

  2. It all depends on the kind of job I think. For example, a plumber will probably make more money than somebody who studied something like art or archeology, while a doctor will probably make more than a mechanic.

  3. According to a statistic from 2021 published on [Stat.si](https://www.stat.si/StatWeb/en/News/Index/10570), there is a significant difference in income between those who have completed only elementary school and those who have completed tertiary education. In fact, the ratio is almost 1:2. However, there is a substantial gap in earnings based on the type of tertiary education completed. For instance, while social science degrees may lead to minimum wage job, degrees in natural science, IT and engineering can yield triple or more. It’s worth noting that some jobs don’t require any formal education, yet still offer the potential for even higher earnings, such as chimney sweeping.

  4. I mean considering you can get jobs you’d never be able to get without a degree you could end up earning €5000/month more right out of Uni than those who just did high school if you’re lucky enough. Although that’s a fairly rare case, but on average the starting salary difference is roughly €900/month between these kinds of jobs. Someone with a University degree will essentially always out earn those without a degree. Like your “life salaray” is several millions SEK higher after taxes for most jobs requiring a degree, a lot of basic degrees like Economist/Business will on average give 40% high salary in your entire life after taxes than a basic high school degree

  5. Those with degrees consistently outearn those without them. The whole “be a plumber!” is an anomaly. And kind of a reddit meme. Stay in school, get a job that requires a degree, and you’re almost always gonna make more than someone with just a high school diploma. Are there anomalies? Sure
    But overall, it’s pretty clear that getting a degree pays off.

  6. Nowadays specialized jobs that don’t require a degree (mechanics, hairdressers, plumbers, accountants, etc) make more money than most degrees.

    I got a degree, not even working in my field as there’s no big demand (I could’ve studied something else but I have learning disabilities that seriously narrowed my choices), and I make considerably less than former high school classmates who do specialized jobs.

    My dad is a master carpenter and his monthly salary is something many people his age with university degrees can only dream of.

  7. They earn more, but not so much (wages in Italy are in general quite low compared to much of Western Europe).

    Actually, for some fields the difference is so small that, from a purely financial point of view, probably it isn’t even worth if you consider the years “lost” at university when you don’t work.

  8. that’s a great question! in my country, the answer is that people with a university degree earn on average about 45% more than those without one. this is a huge difference, and it’s a great incentive to pursue higher education!

  9. doing quick search got some [article from Feb 2022 ilustrating data from 2021](https://www.money.pl/gospodarka/wynagrodzenia-pracownikow-z-roznym-poziomem-wyksztalcenia-6737592880446240a.html). In general the higher the degree the more one makes. [Graph](https://i.wpimg.pl/624x/filerepo.grupawp.pl/api/v1/display/embed/b502c5d1-7885-4b99-bab2-1e86920d01b0) – from left: elementary, gimnasial (short lived level between elementary and highschool), trade school, highschool, after-highschool (i assume it’s highschool+curses), notfinished degree, bachelors, masters, master engeener (it’s odd it doesn’t include medical, military and doctorate degrees). It’s really weird tbh.

    In general stats seem to agree with the statement, but it doesn’t show the full picture – doesn’t take into consideration filed of work, number of people (~1/4 of polish people got some kind of uni degree), if work is performed within the studied field, when they got the degree (if the degree was first, or was it completed once getting the higher pay) etc

    Over the last years degrees definitely lost their importance and trade skills importance risen considerably.

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