\n<\/p>\n
In California, a college degree often pays off\u2014but not equally for all students. A new analysis from California Competes finds that the return on investment for bachelor\u2019s and associate degrees varies widely across the state.<\/p>\n
The report defines ROI as the economic premium of a college degree minus its costs. It measured how much more a graduate earns over 10 years compared to a typical high school graduate among those employed full-time, then subtracted the average net cost of completing a degree at a public institution.<\/p>\n
Over all, 78\u00a0percent of bachelor\u2019s degree holders and 62\u00a0percent of associate degree holders in California see a positive ROI within 10 years of graduating. However, where a student lives shapes those outcomes: The share of bachelor\u2019s degree holders with a positive ROI is higher in coastal, urban regions and lower in inland areas, ranging from 70\u00a0percent in the Inland Empire to 84\u00a0percent in the Bay Area.<\/p>\n
That pattern shifts for associate degrees. In the Bay Area, just 55\u00a0percent of associate degree holders see a positive return, compared to 67\u00a0percent in the Inland Empire.<\/p>\n
David Radwin, principal researcher at California Competes, said the variation underscores the need for stronger alignment between higher education and regional labor markets, noting that comparable college costs statewide mask significant differences in job opportunities and earnings potential.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the things we found in this brief is that the cost of education is not very different across regions,\u201d Radwin said. <\/p>\n
Postgraduate earnings and opportunities are a different story. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe know in the Bay Area technology is one of the big employers\u2014and that those jobs pay really well,\u201d Radwin said. \u201cBut there aren\u2019t as many of those jobs in the Inland Empire or in places like Riverside and San Bernardino.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere aren\u2019t Google or Meta or tech companies at the same scale or concentration, so jobs in those regions aren\u2019t going to offer the same high salaries as in the Bay Area,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Aligning education and jobs: <\/strong>The report notes that strengthening ROI starts with state and institutional leaders prioritizing affordability. In particular, that means expanding access to financial aid that helps cover living costs, not just tuition.<\/p>\n \u201cPolicymakers should be paying attention to increasing earnings and reducing costs,\u201d Radwin said. \u201cThat way graduates can see the return on their investment in college and get stronger economic returns.\u201d<\/p>\n Radwin also pointed to the need to streamline support for student success, including access to public benefit programs such as CalFresh, CalWORKs and Medi-Cal.<\/p>\n \u201cRight now, it\u2019s very difficult for students to access these programs, but it doesn\u2019t have to be,\u201d Radwin said. \u201c[State policymakers] should streamline the application and renewal processes.\u201d<\/p>\n The report also highlights the need to strengthen the link between higher education and regional employment. That includes more intentional alignment between college programs and local labor market demand, starting with better data collection on how students fare after leaving college.<\/p>\n Radwin said California Competes is backing SB 1054, introduced by California state senator Christopher Cabaldon, which would expand state data collection to include employees\u2019 hours worked, job locations and occupations\u2014providing a more complete picture of graduates\u2019 employment outcomes.<\/p>\n \u201cThat, in turn, would better equip students, colleges and policymakers with the information needed to create, maintain and expand high-value programs that lead to good jobs,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n At the federal level, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act introduces new program-level accountability metrics, set to take effect July 1.<\/p>\n Radwin added that institutions should deepen partnerships with employers, including through internships and paid work-based learning opportunities.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to do more of this work. It\u2019s difficult and takes time, but it\u2019s critical for helping students transition into the workforce,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Transparency in outcomes:<\/strong> Radwin said the findings point to a broader need for colleges to be more transparent about the economic returns associated with different majors and career pathways.<\/p>\n \u201cInstitutions have a lot of responsibility for communicating this information,\u201d Radwin said. \u201cThey need to do a better job of informing students early on\u2014before they matriculate or at least within the first year\u2014so they can make choices that align with their goals.\u201d<\/p>\n But Radwin said that transparency is about equipping students with information, not steering them toward specific careers.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd if one of those goals is to earn a certain income, students should know what graduates from their program are earning, whether in their first job or over time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cNot everyone needs to make a million dollars,\u201d he added. \u201cThere are high-social-value careers\u2014like teaching, social work or ministry\u2014that aren\u2019t particularly well paid. But those are decisions students should make with clear information.\u201d<\/p>\n In Inside Higher Ed<\/em>\u2019s main 2025 Student Voice survey of more than 5,000 undergraduates, just a fraction of respondents\u201412\u00a0percent\u2014said they know detailed outcomes data for their program of study. Just 14\u00a0percent indicated this information is readily available.<\/p>\n Get more content like this directly to your inbox. <\/em>Subscribe here.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In California, a college degree often pays off\u2014but not equally for all students. A new analysis from California Competes finds that the return on investment for bachelor\u2019s and associate degrees varies widely across the state. The report defines ROI as the economic premium of a college degree minus its costs. It measured how much more<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":47630,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[535,22829,2052],"class_list":{"0":"post-47629","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-education","8":"tag-college","9":"tag-equally","10":"tag-pays"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47629","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=47629"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47629\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/47630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=47629"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=47629"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=47629"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}