That time, specifically, was 1985.
The minimum wage was livable.
College costs were palatable.
Today, the picture is much grimmer.
Even two jobs are often no match for the cost of attending most public, four-year universities.
During Keysers final undergraduate semester, she was working up to 70 hours a week split among three jobs.
Her experience is more the rule than the exception.
The problem, say higher-education experts, is economics.
Probably not as good as youd like.
It always seems like an uphill battle to build (and keep) a decent amount in savings.
But what if your car breaks down, or you have a sudden medical bill?
In 1985, for example, the federal minimum wage was $3.35.
That same year, a four-year, public education ran $3,859.
Did you know?
Earnings have gone down, Baum said.
The national minimum wage goes down every year in real terms.
Thats because of inflation.
But what about the workers who earn above the federal minimum wage?
Twelve states have minimum wages above $10.
And numerous big employers offer $15 minimum wages, thanks to a tight labor market.
But the increase in college costs far outpaced the wage gains.
Even those workers making double the federal minimum wage still cant afford college.
Here are the key takeaways.
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College costs for a four-year, public institution rose 128% since 1985.
In 1985, minimum-wage workers could pay for college in 1,152 hours.
Today, it takes minimum-wage workers nearly 2,765 hours to cover college costs.
That requires a 53-hour work week.
The purchasing power of the minimum wage has fallen since 1985, by 5.9%.
For all workers, median hourly wages increased 5.5%.
But college costs grew 23 times faster than those wage gains.
What Are Todays Students to Do?
Today, students are likely to work during college to cover basic living expenses not full college costs.
Walsh underscored a decision many students face: Work more or take out additional student loans?
We make a run at look at the cost of working along with the benefit of working.
And youre delaying your earning power by one year.
Through that lens, working extra and delaying graduation could end up being more expensive in the long run.
Its trying to find that moderation, Walsh said.
You want to be thrifty but also realistic.
Even working as much as she did, Becky Keyser barely afforded basic necessities during college.
When her 98 Ford Escorts AC broke, she had to bear the Florida heat for years.
These days, she lives in Oxford, England.
While shes escaped the Florida heat, her student debt still looms.
Shes on an income-based repayment plan.
College costs are based on the fees to attend a public, four-year institution for one academic school year.
This estimate includes tuition, fees, room and board.
Adam Hardy is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder.
He specializes in ways to make money that dont involve stuffy corporate offices.
Read his latest articles here, or say hi on Twitter@hardyjournalism.
Former Penny Hoarder data journalist Alex Mahadevan contributed to this article.
(Can you sense my millennial sarcasm there?)
You know which ones were talking about: rent, utilities, cell phone bill, insurance, groceries…
