Gauge your social status

[Courtesy Flush]

Click the link for a Flash tool that determines your social status (click through the ad)

I was surprised to see how high I ranked. I was in the upper middle on one factor, and top fifth on two factors. Here in the South, we're known to have lower income, yet I came out well nationally on that score. Amazing, since I doubt my salary could pay the rent on a New York apartment.

My lowest score was my job description. Still in the middle range, though. Having a bachelor's degree put me in the top fifth. Another surprise.

How do you fare?


http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html/national/20050515_CLASS_GRAPHIC/index_01.html?adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1180704000-dPFhs0KfeXglb+sbS4GNlQ

[Lyric]

1. Not very good

Lower to lower-middle on everything but education. Education put me in the middle-middle. Hopefully that will change as soon as I'm done with college.

[Courtesy Flush]

2. Youth works against you

The factors tend to favor older people. As you get older, your income and savings rise (that's half the factors). Also, if you're not me, your job description also improves.

I'm 47 now. In college I would have come out at the bottom of the scale.

[Lyric]

9. Youth is certainly part of it

although I'm not as young as most college students. (I'll be 28 in less than a month)

A larger part is that I'm from a dirt-poor, uneducated, backwoods family, which leaves me with very little of the support and family resources that many other middle-class people have when they're breaking out on their own. I've spent the vast majority of my life living in abject, heartbreaking poverty.. The reason I'm succeeding where the rest of my family wasn't able to is because I won the genetic lottery and wound up with a genius-level IQ, which is making higher education a possibility for me. My sister and brother are barely literate, and I'm the first person *ever* in my family (so far as I know) to graduate high school--much less go to college.

When my Mom looks at me now, I know what she's seeing. It's a combination of pride and wild hope--hope that I can get out of the poverty trap she spent her life inside of, and (although she likely won't admit it) hope that my success will mean that she won't have to go without proper medical care, healthy food, and day-to-day life security when she's an elderly woman. I don't blame her a bit for that. Getting old is a terrifying prospect, when you can't make ends meet when you're young. She has no savings at all, doesn't own anything of value, and is probably scared to death of what retirement is going to hold for her.

[supernova]

22. ....

:hug:

And congratulations on all that you have and will accomplish.

[LiberalFighter]

3. They didn't have my occupation.... RETIRED

[Courtesy Flush]

4. That puts you over the top

That's my dream job!

[LiberalFighter]

17. I feel good retired... just received my first pension payment

and it is more than my pre-retirement wages.

[MissMillie]

5. well, I guess over all, I'm in the middle

for job, I'm "middle"

for education and income, I'm "upper middle" and in wealth, I'm "lower middle"

I just saw the "percentile" thing on the left...

overall 54th.

[nuxvomica]

6. I average at the 86th percentile, which is surprising

I don't think of myself as being that high up on the ladder. I'm currently agonizing over whether I can afford a new car because my current vehicle is 10 years old and doesn't have a/c.

[DrDan]

7. wow - average 88th percentile

[philosophie_en_rose]

8. much higher than I expected.

in the top fifth for the first three categories. in the middle in the last category.

[Zavulon]

10. 82nd percentile? That can't be right.

This country is screwed if my score is that high.

[lizerdbits]

11. My income is upper middle class?!

Not when you live in an area where 3-4 BR townhouses are advertised as "starting from the mid-400s" and older non mcmansion single family homes go for $600,000. If I had my income in the middle of Kansas maybe I'd be upper middle class. This should only apply to you if you live in an area that fits the national average. My income in NYC would probably put me in a really bad area for renting an apartment, if in one at all.

[TZ]

18. what did you put in for occupation?

I entered it as "diagnostic related technician" and that was only middle prestige. I got 71% overall! I was surprised how high a bachelors degree ranked, 91%!

[lizerdbits]

21. Income is income

No matter what I select it's still the same amount. But I put 'other practitioner or technical occupations' since I'm not really in diagnostics anymore. The problem is job title name and figuring out what it means to who. What you put sort of fits for me but not really. Also under the Life, Physical and Social sciences category they have a Biological scientist that is high on the prestige scale and Biological Technician that is pretty low. My title is Biologist so I guess I'm in the middle! Since I've moved a little into the R&D aspect I'm not strictly a technician.

[Gormy Cuss]

25. The income and wealth markets are pretty weak for just the reason you stated.

On a national average basis many of us who live in high cost areas get very high ratings because average incomes tend to be higher.

[no name no slogan]

12. I did better than I thought

partially because I have a bachelor's degree and work in IT. Not surprisingly, my lowest ranking was in wealth (don't own property, drive an 11-year-old car, don't own any expensive toys, etc.)

Interesting little quiz...

[1gobluedem]

13. Average = 82nd percentile

Even though my occupation doesn't really fit any of the categories (development director).

[Arugula Latte]

14. 86th percentile ...

Who woulda thunk it?

I figured the value of my house (which I'm still paying off) into "wealth," which bumped me up a bit. I don't know if that was kosher or not...

[Orangepeel]

30. you should use the estimated value minus what you owe on the mortage

although it probably won't make much difference. When you get into the upper fifth, the category endpoints are very far apart.

[Debi]

15. I'm @ 69%, my husband is @ 82% (guess that JD Degree does come in handy!) n/t

[mainegreen]

16. 64th percentile.

I'm young and the savings dragged me down a bit.

[AlCzervik]

19. 89th percentile.

[supernova]

20. 78% percentile

Eventhough I'm out of work right now. When I do work I make good money (because so few can do it properly), I have a BA, and I have some tangible assets.

Not bad... actually better than I thought. I guess I should stop beating myself up .... about the material aspect of life anyway. ;-)

edit: According to that graph, I'm Upper Middle Class... and tantalizingly just below Top Fifth.

edit2: I'm gonna do it for my alternate job that I want to work myself into and see what that result is. Brb.

edit3: If I do what I have envisioned for myself I could get 83% percentile. Kewel!

[EstimatedProphet]

23. Higher than I would have expected-74th percentile

Education powers it I expect in my case.

[ceile]

24. 58th percentile

So much for all that education, I'm still poor and not worth anything.

[BluePatriot]

26. Lower middle in all but education, that's top-fifth

*waves at other underemployed college grads*

[NMDemDist2]

27. overall 57%

if I used my occupation from last year it jumped me to a 66%

[Critters2]

28. 67th percentile

99th for education
74th for occupation
56th for income
34th for savings (I know, my bad) but I do have a good pension, which maybe I should have included. Not sure.

Oh well. I'm doing okay.

[doggyboy]

29. Not valid for me. I scored a 31%

and only that high because I have "some college", but when I tell my story IRL, my social status increases to "angel"