I will say that I scanned one of the studies linked in this NYer piece, based on what a commenter said, and the article is misleading. Yes, Swedish adults who entered late earned less eventually--but not due to being poorly educated or having worse jobs. It was just the result of having one less year in the workforce. Big deal.
Well, losing a year's salary
is a big deal.
And assuming you live until retirement, you are losing an amount at least equal to the salary during the last year of your career, not the amount you make right out of school.
It's also a lost year of fertility/reproductive health if you plan to finish school before trying to conceive.
