Is your degree worth it? We give you the real math — not the marketing.
College is the biggest financial decision most families will ever make. A four-year degree can cost $200,000+ when you include the wages you give up while studying. Yet most families make this decision with college brochures, ranking lists, and gut feelings — not with honest numbers.
WorthDegree exists to change that. We take the same public government data that's available to everyone — and synthesize it into a decision tool that answers the one question that matters: "Is this path worth it for my family's situation?"
Other tools stop at calculation. We add the judgment layer:
The ~$120K you don't earn while studying full-time. No brochure prints this.
4-year vs community transfer vs certificate/apprenticeship. Same license, different math.
What the bottom 30% of graduates actually experience. Hedge self-overestimation.
Dual-exit analysis (H1B probability vs return-home salary) no advisor will calculate for you.
Every calculation is grounded in primary-source data and standard financial formulas:
| Component | Formula / Source |
|---|---|
| Direct cost | Annual net price (Scorecard) × years enrolled. Net price = average cost after grants/scholarships. |
| Opportunity cost | Years × high school graduate median annual income ($46,748, BLS 2023) × 0.65 part-time offset factor |
| Total cost | Direct cost + Opportunity cost |
| Payback years | Total cost ÷ (starting salary − high school baseline income). If delta ≤ 0, returns infinity ("cannot break even"). |
| Loan payment | Standard amortization PMT formula. Rate: 6.53% (2024-25 federal direct). Term: 10 years standard. |
| Starting salary | Route A/B: Scorecard 10-year median earnings (or BLS bachelor baseline if missing). Route C: BLS occupation median wage. |
| Worst case (25th pct) | Starting salary × 0.70. Payback extended by 1.5×. |
| Job outlook score | BLS 2023-2033 growth %: ≥8%→20, 4-8%→40, 0-4%→60, <0%→85. Lower = better outlook. |
| Tech impact (四分法) | 替代型 / 改造型 / 受益型 / 催生型 — trend analysis, not "AI panic." BLS growth projections already incorporate expected technology impacts. |
| H1B stay probability | USCIS FY2026 selection rate (~35%) × employer sponsor rate (friendly:60% / neutral:30% / closed:10%) × OPT multiplier (STEM:3 / non-STEM:1) |
Every number is sourced from publicly available government data. We do not use proprietary, paid, or self-reported data.
| Source | What we use | Update frequency |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. Dept of Education — College Scorecard | Net price, completion rate, 10-yr median earnings, admission rate, tuition (in/out-of-state) | Annual (API) |
| BLS — Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics | Median wages by occupation, 25th percentile, employment levels | Annual |
| BLS — Occupational Outlook Handbook | Job growth projections 2023-2033, typical entry education | Annual |
| College Board — Trends in College Pricing | Tuition benchmarks (in-state public, out-of-state, private, community) | Annual |
| Federal Student Aid (studentaid.gov) | Undergraduate direct loan interest rate (6.53% for 2024-25) | Annual (academic year) |
| USCIS | H1B FY2026 registration, selection, and selection rate data | Annual (March cap season) |
All data is from public government sources and may be used commercially with attribution. We do not scrape or republish proprietary data.
Every number traces to a named government source with year. No anonymous "studies show."
All calculations run in your browser. No account, no stored inputs, no tracking what you calculate.
We don't sell "AI is coming for your job" panic. We present job trends as analysis, not doom.
Every route includes the 25th percentile outcome. If the worst case breaks the plan, you deserve to know before signing.
No display ads, no school recruitment leads, no loan referrals, no sponsored placements. Revenue comes from the $29 report — period. See How We Make Money.
WorthDegree is not a lender, loan servicer, school, financial aid office, enrollment counselor, immigration attorney, or substitute for a licensed professional. Every calculator produces an estimate, not a determination.
Complex situations — appealing a financial aid award, choosing between specific schools, evaluating immigration pathways, or making a binding financial decision — warrant a qualified professional or your school's financial aid office.
Disclaimer: WorthDegree provides estimates based on publicly available historical data. Results are not guarantees of future earnings, employment, loan terms, or visa outcomes. Earnings data is typically 2+ years lagged. Individual results vary significantly. This tool is for decision support, not financial, legal, or immigration advice.
Errors happen. If you find one — a stale rate, a wrong formula, a missing source — email us and we'll investigate within 48 hours, publish the correction, and update the affected page. Material corrections are noted in our Methodology section with a "last reviewed" date.