It may come down to priorities. Does a person have more taken out of their paycheck and put away for retirement or less and take home more money? If a person is going to give to VT, then do they give to the academic side only, the Hokie Club, or a combination of both? Does the person only give to the Hokie Club instead of buying season tickets or do they give less and use the extra money towards buying season tickets? Does a person give to the Hokie Club or take that money to save up to buy their first home? Does a person give to the Hokie Club even though they don't plan to buy season tickets or attend any home sporting events or use that money towards something else?

Even if a person has excellent financial management skills, it doesn't mean that something doesn't have to give from time to time. People are now expected to create an emergency fund (6 months worth of their salary) in the event they are laid off/fired, put more down as a down payment on a new home, pay off debt, put more of their paycheck into retirement since employers are matching less, and all the other expenses that come with having a family. While it is nice to say that a person should get a job with a higher salary, it ignores whether the person loves the job or not. The reality is that there will always be some jobs (i.e. civil servants, military, etc.) where the pay will never be great. It doesn't mean that VT grads shouldn't go into those professions because sometimes there is more to life than a person's salary.