Graduating from college kind of sucks — especially in the current climate.
These days, grads typically have thousands of dollars worth of loans, are competing for jobs against just about every age bracket due to the pandemic and shrinking middle class, and are lonely because friends went back to their home states to live with family since no one can afford to exist alone.
But things are a little different in Ohio, apparently. The Buckeye State is the land of money and opportunity, says financial company Self.
Self includes three Ohio cities among its list of best-paying metros for recent college graduates. Released in March, Self’s research shows that grads in Ohio earn a median of at least $50,000 per year when adjusting for cost of living — earnings that are among the highest in the country. Here, lower housing and food costs can help grads stretch their new salaries.
North Dakota leads the nation in paying college graduates well.
Unsurprisingly, Ohio’s top cities are key factors in the state’s allure for college graduates. Cincinnati comes in at No. 15 in the country, with grads earning an adjusted median of $48,000. Self notes that the cost of living here is 9.4% below average, and recent grads make up 2.4% of the total population. That makes sense, as Cincinnati is home to nearly 50 colleges and universities within 50 miles, according to CollegeSimply.
But Cincinnati isn’t the only Ohio metro to rank highly on Self’s list. Columbus, home of the Ohio State University, comes in at No. 8 with adjusted median earnings of $51,856, and Cleveland is No. 6 with $52,280.
The San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara metro in California is the best-paying region in the nation for college grads, Self says. There, grads earn a median of $72,000, but those earnings are adjusted down to $56,827 because the cost of living is 26.7% above average.
For its data, Self reviewed information from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis, among others. The financial company defined “college graduate” as being 22-27 years old, holding a bachelor’s degree and working full time.
Self notes that income widely depends on location, cost of living, field of study and occupation.
See Self’s full list and methodology at self.inc.
This article appears in Apr 1-30, 2021.