Report: College degree worth extra $23,000 a year
WASHINGTON (AP) -- How much is a bachelor's degree worth? About $23,000 a year, the government said in a report released Thursday. That is the average gap in earnings between adults with bachelor's degrees and those with high school diplomas, according to data from the Census Bureau. College graduates made an average of $51,554 in 2004, the most recent figures available, compared with $28,645 for adults with a high school diploma. High school dropouts earned an average of $19,169 and those with advanced college degrees made an average of $78,093.

