if you choose not to attend college, one likely scenario would be you picking up a job. Say you get a job out of high school for $35k per year. After four years you’ve earned about $140k (without any increases in wage or bonuses).
What happens if you go to school? Let’s assume your yearly tuition and expenses is $30k and you choose to put your head down and graduate within four years. Let's say you choose to stay completely focused on school and do not work while in college.
After four years you are out $120k right? Well… yes, but this is where opportunity cost comes in. Because you chose to go to college instead of working, your opportunity cost is actually the sum of your college expenses plus the money you could have earned had you chosen not to work. Your opportunity cost to attend college is $260k.
