What is the Cost:Benefit of a Gap Year?

CBS News: "Delaying college for a year now, during the coronavirus pandemic, could cost members of the class of 2024 about $90,000 in lifetime earnings, according to a new analysis from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. About half of the longterm earnings losses comes from forgoing the $43,000 salary that new graduates typically earn in their first year of work after graduation ... Wage increases are steeper at the beginning of young professionals' careers — the graduate who earns their degree at age 22 can, by the time they are 25, expect to earn an average of $52,000 ... But the graduate who starts working a year later, would, by age 25, only be earning $49,000 with two, versus three years of professional experience under their belts. And so on and so forth in following years — all the way to retirement age."

"These disparities exist even during non-COVID-19 times. But the pandemic has made them more acute because the global spread of the novel coronavirus has lowered what economists call the 'opportunity cost' of going to college — or what you give up to be in school. That's in part because unemployment has soared since the pandemic hit, effectively eliminating the job opportunities that high school graduates could normally pursue as an alternative to college. Non-college degree holders in particular have faced some of the highest rates of unemployment: About one quarter of young workers without a college degree were unemployed in the months following the onset of the pandemic."

"For simplicity's sake, the Fed researchers assumed that students give up no opportunities by going to college right now. That drives up the rate of return for a bachelor's degree to 17%, from 14% in normal times.Another way of stating that: For every dollar you spend on a degree, you'd earn $1.17 on the investment. For those students who delay college by a year, the return on the investment drops to 13%, the economists found."

College Food & 'The 6-Foot Kitchen'

The New York Times: "At campuses across the country, self-serve stations, where students can make their own salads or taco bowls, will be eliminated; instead, masked-and-gloved workers, shielded by plexiglass barriers, will serve nearly everything. Gone, too, will be condiment and coffee stations, replaced by single-serving ketchup and salad-dressing packets and paper cups that many schools were triumphantly phasing out in an effort to reduce waste. Several universities are even using robots to prepare food and deliver it."

"Sodexo, the food service giant that operates at some 600 campuses in the United States, has created a training module called the Six Foot Kitchen, which provides guidance on how to create safe kitchen environments — everything from tape marks on the floor to mark safe distances, to protocols for accepting deliveries and managing storage. Sodexo is also turning to technology for help. At two of the universities it works with, the company has robots ready to deliver food to students outside dining halls and food courts."

"George Mason University, in Fairfax, Va., is one of those schools. When its 36,000 students head back to school on Aug. 24, Sodexo will have 43 robots — essentially high-tech coolers on wheels — ready to deliver meals and snacks from Starbucks, Dunkin’ and other brands. Students order via an app, food workers load the order into the robot, then the robot drives itself to the appointed location, whether that’s a dorm or a bench near the library."

Tulane threatens expulsion for partygoers

CNBC: "Tulane is banning all parties or gatherings of more than 15 people as the private college tries to protect students and staff against spreading the coronavirus. Violators will risk suspension or expulsion ...The private school, while boasting an 11% acceptance rate for the incoming freshman class, is the fifth top party school in the U.S., according to the Princeton Review ... Tulane’s announcement comes as colleges try to balance holding in-person classes in the fall against the public health risks."

"Cornell University leadership, notably, cited school researchers who found the virus would be more likely to spread with classes solely online than a hybrid model, since students living off-campus would return to campus and not have to partake in mandated testing required for learning on campus if only taking online courses."

"Tulane’s reopening plan requires students starting class Aug. 19, five days earlier than originally planned, and ending the semester Nov. 24, with most exams happening online after Thanksgiving. Tulane plans to test all students upon arrival, provide frequent testing throughout the semester and put less people than normal in housing and classrooms."