Manifold benefits of a college degree

College is the best investment one can make. But if you look at the returns on Chinese higher education in monetary terms you might question this.

Graduates in 2011 earned a monthly income of 2,766 yuan ($434) or about 33,192 yuan for the year on average, a rise of 11.6 percent on the income of graduates in 2010, according to a report recently released by Mycos, an education consulting company.

As there is no official cost-benefit analysis of college education in China, I've checked with a dozen new graduates from colleges across the country that now have jobs. I found their four years of tuition, room and board cost anywhere from 80,000-120,000 yuan. The expenses for those that attended private colleges and the "independent" schools of public universities will be significantly higher, as these institutions charge several times more in tuition fees.