Though many students have been told that college will open up doors for them, this phrase may prove to be too vague to provide any real motivation towards going to college or degree progress.

However, in a recent article published by The 74, former senior staff member for the US Department of Education, Bruno Manno, compiled various data that not only pointed to the earnings bonus that comes with a degree, but to the satisfactory, well-rounded life that comes with it.

The “college earnings premium” that comes with a degree has gone down over the years and varies depending on factors such as “degree, type, race, gender and ethnicity”, but has never completely gone away according to a study conducted by the National Bureau of Economic Research. Yet, when discussing reasons to go to college, this is the statistic that is so frequently discussed.

In truth, a college education comes with additional lifestyle benefits even outside of how much money a graduate is likely to make. The College Board’s “Education Pays 2016” study suggested that college graduates were more likely to vote, volunteer, and live a healthy lifestyle that was free of smoking and obesity. These benefits also extended to graduates children, as well as showing that the children of graduates are more likely to be interested in pursuing educational activities themselves. The Lumina Foundation also found that college graduates are more likely to enjoy the perks of employment such as healthcare and retirement plans.

Perhaps most compellingly, the Gallup Poll reported that college graduates were more likely to self-report that they were doing well in five ways: socially, financially, physically, in terms of community, and feeling like they had a purpose. This emphasizes that college can be a gateway not just to make more money, but to live a well-rounded, happy lifestyle overall.

The article also reported that while the type of higher education institution attended had no effect on these numbers, feeling supported on campus did.

Read the full report here.