How Can Going Back to School Benefit You & Your Family Long Term?

By Genevieve Blaber, College: U Got It?, @CollegeBoundnet

Any mother knows that taking care of children, career, and household can be time-consuming and more than a little daunting. But that doesn’t mean you should, or even have to, give up your career goals. Thanks to the prevalence of online degree programs, career schools, and community colleges, mothers all over the country now have the chance to increase their career potential without sacrificing their family lives. In fact, while the thought of returning to school may seem like a self-indulgent fantasy, it’s a wise move that may benefit you and your family in the long-run.

If you don’t believe us, check out some of these recent stats and figures and think about whether you can afford to give up your career future.

• There’s already a gender gap to contend with, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Women who worked full time in 2008 made 20.75 percent less than men when it came to median weekly earnings.
  
  
• Across the United States, the wage gap causes the working families to lose $200 billion in income each year, according to the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO)
  
  
• Learning equals earning. Amongst full-time workers age 25 and over, the median weekly wages for workers with associate degrees was $727 as compared to $620 for those who had only graduated from high school. Bachelor’s degree recipients did even better with $999 a week, says the BLS.
  
  
• According to the New York Times, women are more likely to be involved in industries where the employment rate is not as susceptible to the state of the economy. Such fields include health care and education.
  
  
• The top five best state economies for working women according to InfoPlease.com are: the District of Columbia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Vermont. To contrast, the five worst are: Arkansas, Louisiana, West Virginia, Mississippi, and Kentucky.
  
  
• The top five occupations that offered the highest median salaries for women who worked full time were: pharmacists, chief executives, lawyers, computer and information systems managers, and computer software engineers.
  
  
• Women currently make up 46 percent of the nation’s workforce and that number is expected to grow a full percentage point over the seven years.
  
  
• According to the AFL-CIO, each woman who works in a predominantly male profession makes $3,446 less than her male co-workers every year.

For additional Posts from the #GNO lifelong learning Panelists:

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