Reply To: dilemma in changing jobs

First, add what your family will save in tuition to what you earn at the college. How does that compare to what you would earn if you returned to teaching. Since the school is local, your daughters save on room and board, which also helps the overall family balance sheet.

If you save a lot more on tuition, room and board than you lose on the difference between the two salaries, then turn to your daughters for input. All of Copa’s questions are good ones. In addition, how eager are your daughters to avoid educational debt. If they are very eager, then they can contribute some $ to the current family budget to make up some of the wages you are losing. Depending upon the college at which you teach, your daughters will be eligible for free tuition at a number of colleges, if your college and the colleges they are interested in are all participants in the Tuition Exchange program.