DECISION GUIDE 02
Whose earnings are you looking at?
Three measures that should never be treated as the same thing.
Occupational wages describe workers
A wage estimate for registered nurses describes workers in that occupation and geography. It includes a range of experience levels. It is not the starting salary of a particular college’s graduates. A low wage percentile is not automatically entry pay.
Graduate earnings describe a covered cohort
A graduate outcome needs a source, institution, field, credential, cohort and time since graduation. Coverage and suppression matter. Census PSEO provides experimental graduate outcomes; it does not cover every program or every graduate.
Job projections describe an estimated future
Projected openings can include people replacing workers who leave an occupation. They are not the same as current vacancies, new jobs alone, or guaranteed employment. A forecast needs its own geography and date range.
A useful number comes with context
Look for the metric, population, geography, reference period and source. If a page says “salary” without those details, ask for the underlying evidence before relying on it.
Use evidence alongside the rest of your life
Work conditions, interests, family responsibilities, advancement and the broader value of education matter. A single salary figure cannot decide what is right for you.