All calculators are downloadable Excel spreadsheets that allow you to save and amend your own personal data.With this spreadsheet, enter your personal data in the purple coloured cells.

Go to University or straight to work calculator

I know a lot of people that go to University to pursue something they love and also to have the University experience. Myself included. I chose a social University and some pretty generic degrees in Physical Education and Commerce. And I am adamant that I would likely be better off financially today if I didn’t go to University. It cost a lot of money moving away from home in food and accommodation. Not to mention the tuition and book costs. Then of course there is the five year period of not working because I was studying. That is a lot of extra cost and lost income. And I have scaled back at work in my mid 40’s too. I will never maximize my earning potential nor my University return on investment.

Sure, on average, those with degrees earn more than those without. But it can take many decades to get ahead to recover from the extra costs and lost income of going to University. Especially if you choose a general degree like I did.

People who are thinking of retiring early or scaling back their careers in mid life are giving up the best years of earning potential, which is the time when many University graduates finances start racing ahead of those who didn’t go to University.

A lot of people go to University just because. No real reason. With this calculator, I just wanted to provide a resource that shows the impact of that decision. It can take a long time for University to pay off, if at all.

Try and select a course that has good job prospects and is not just something you are passionate about. Passion helps, but not if it doesn’t pay the bills. That way, you can get your money back that much sooner. Work on your passion on the side if you must. Being in your chosen career for the long haul will definitely help with the ROI (return on investment) too.

For the calculator itself, enter your data in the purple cells for both options. If you do go to University, and then if you don’t go to University. For your expenses, only put it down as a cost if it is a cost you would incur if you didn’t choose the other action. For example, if you would pay rent of $7,000 a year working, but $13,000 going to Uni, then put $6,000 a year cost for going to Uni and $0 for staying at home and working. This calculator in your ‘study years’ is not looking at the absolute amount of money you spend. It is looking at the relative amount you are spending compared to the alternative option.

You can then see how much savings you will have each year for the next 50 years with each option and how long it would take for one option to be better than the other (financially speaking).

The calculator also assumes no major purchases like a house or a wedding bill. It is just a calculator comparing the decision to go to University or not. I didn’t want to over complicate things. It’s a like for like comparison in that sense. Yet in reality, University graduated people are typically higher earners on average and will spend more money. Lifestyle creep is real. That makes it even harder for the University graduated person to get ahead.

Finally, for some people there are other benefits than just the financials. Some just can’t handle the classroom environment and would greatly benefit from work. Whereas others can benefit from the classroom and University environment. I was painfully shy throughout high school with not many life skills, but University helped out a lot. Moving from home and forced to fend for myself meant a quick learning curve which benefited me in other ways.

It’s an important decision and not one that should be made with such little thought as I and many others made.

That’s enough preamble. Have fun playing around with some numbers.

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