There is a cost to not educating young people

A recent article in The Atlantic features the following headline: What’s More Expensive Than College?  Not Going To College. The article references a recent Opportunity Action Paper from the International Youth Foundation, which examines access to education for the more 1.2 billion youth aged 15-24 who now inhabit the planet.

The challenge facing youth in nations with developing economies is gaining access to effective secondary education and higher-level skills training. In developed nations, it is access to postsecondary education. No single achievement makes a greater positive impact on a nation or its people than increasing education levels, the report notes.

In the U.S. and Europe there are huge annual social costs associated with those who are not engaged in employment, education, or training, so-called “NEETS,” the IYR report notes. Many other recent studies also point to the benefits of a more educated population. Read more.