Problem
The Santa Cruz County fire department in California pays its employees with associate degrees $120 more a month than if they are high school graduates, $180 more for bachelor degrees, and $240 more for a master's degree (santacruzsentinel.com, December 3, 2006). Suppose you know that you want to work for this fire department and want to maximize how much you earn. Given that you want to be a firefighter, when you graduate from high school, should you go to college for four years at a cost of $12,000 per year or go directly into the fire department? In your calculations, assume that you'll work for 40 years and then retire and consider interest rates of 5% and 20%. Do you need to know how much a high school graduate earns to answer this question?
The response should include a reference list. Double-space, using Times New Roman 12 pnt font, one-inch margins, and APA style of writing and citations.