USG Report Shows Payoffs for AASU Graduates, Chatham County, and the
State; Highlights Disciplines in Demand
Savannah, GA—November 3, 2003—The
University System of Georgia (USG) has announced that a college degree
is worth an average of $14,000 a year more than a high school graduate
could expect to make in the state of Georgia. Over the course of a
working career, the average public college or university graduate
in Georgia can expect to earn nearly $1 million more than a high-school-educated
neighbor.
These findings were released as part of the "Value of University
System or Georgia Education," an Intellectual Capital Partnership
Program (ICAPP) study conducted by the Georgia Institute of Technology.
The study shows that overall increased earnings resulting from college
degrees added $1.25 billion to the state's economy during 1998. It
also confirms that about half of all Georgians who hold recent post-secondary
degrees were educated by a USG institution. The ICAPP study may be
found at www.usg.edu.
According to the report, USG graduates employed in Chatham County
earned $28.4 million more than they would have with a high school
education. Approximately 34% of the wages of a worker with a bachelor's
degree can be attributed to the earning of the bachelor's degree.
Chatham County ranks fifth in the state in increased wages attributed
to education by USG institutions. Graduates of Armstrong Atlantic
State University earned an average wage of $30,551 — an average
of $9,912 per year more than high school graduates.
"Although the wage premium for college graduates working in the
Savannah area is lower than the state average, much of this difference
can be attributed to differences in the cost of living between Savannah
and other urban areas of the state," said Rick McGrath, associate
professor of economics at AASU.
The ICAPP report also highlights the importance of USG institutions
in providing education and training in high-demand occupations. In
particular, the ICAPP study indicates that computer and information
sciences, nursing, and health administration were among the top education
programs that had the greatest economic impact in 1998. During the
year studied, AASU graduated a total of 123 students from these programs.
AASU also prepares graduates in five of the top seven programs with
the greatest total economic impact statewide, and prepares students
for six of the thirteen most difficult to fill occupations.
The study also highlighted the occupations that will be in the most
demand during this decade (2000-2010). Topping the list were registered
nurses, computer support specialists, computer software engineers,
network and computer system administration, pre-school teachers, elementary
school teachers, computer systems analysts, and secondary school teachers.
Because of its leading role in computers, health professions, and
education, Armstrong Atlantic is a major regional provider of nine
of the top ten occupations in expected job growth in Georgia for this
decade.
During this decade, AASU's School of Computing expects to graduate
approximately 400 students from its bachelor degrees in computer science
and information technology, and master's degree in computer science.
In addition, the School of Computing offers an engineering studies
program that is a part of Georgia Tech's Regional Engineering Program.
AASU and Georgia Southern University are partners in an ICAPP Advantage
grant to educate Java software developers, who can engineer sophisticated
cellphone billing software for VeriSign Savannah.
The College of Health Professions expects to graduate approximately
1,200 students from the Bachelor of Nursing and Master of Nursing
programs during this decade. This would result in an estimated wage
gain of $12.1 million per year thereafter. The school anticipates
a surge in the number of nursing graduates thanks to the fast-track
nursing program that was implemented in 2002. The program is made
possible through an ICAPP Advantage grant, which helps employers meet
immediate educated workforce needs.
During this decade, the College of Education expects approximately
1,400 students to graduate from its early childhood and middle/secondary
programs. The early childhood education program has experienced a
157% increase in the number of students as a result of the new fast-track
teaching program—Georgia Teacher Alternative Preparation Program.
The program was established to help schools meet critical staffing
needs resulting from a significant shortage of qualified teachers
in the state.
"Because of its strength in computers, health professions, education,
and the liberal arts, Armstrong Atlantic State University is a driving
force in productivity and wages in Southeast Georgia," said McGrath.
"By providing education in high-growth fields and hard-to-fill
occupations, AASU is a crucial component of the economic activity
in this region of the state."
