Question

Aaron is a high school graduate working as a retail clerk. He earns a median salary for a high school graduate. Aaron is thinking about going to college to get an associate's degree. If he completes his degree in 2 years and college costs total $30,000, how long will it take Aaron to recover his investment, assuming that he earns the median salary and continues to work full time while he is attending school?
A graph titled Median Annual Household Income by Educational Attainment of Householder, 1997. Professional degree, 92,228 dollars; doctorate degree, 87,232 dollars; master's degree, 68,115 dollars; Bachelor's degree or more, 63,292 dollars; Bachelor's degree, 59,048 dollars; associate degree, 45,258 dollars; some college, no degree, 40,015 dollars; high school graduate, 33,779 dollars; ninth to twelfth grade, 19,851 dollars; than twelfth grade, 15,541 dollars.
a.
about 2.5 years
b.
about 5.5 years
c.
about 8.5 years
d.
about 11.5 years



Please select the best answer from the choices provided


A
B
C
D

Answer 1

First find the annual income increase from getting an associate degree:
45,258 − 33,779 = 11,479 dollars per year.

Time to recover $30,000 = 30,000 / 11,479 ≈ 2.62 years ≈ about 2.5 years.

Answer: A.