He's talking about recent grads salaries, not people who've been working for 5 years.. I got my degree and started at 33K + ~3K bonus holiday bonus and some other insignificant bonuses, but after 2 years was making 120K
just a bachelors, I didn't necessarily need/use anything I learned in college specifically, I never really went to class except for exams.. Had a kid and a job.. the little piece of paper quickly opens doors and checks peoples boxes though for sure..
There's always going to be exceptions, but it is generally not a ie.