<prompt> Human: So, Im a senior in higschool about to graduate and Im trying to figure out what to do with my life. I really want to go into Wildlife Biology and get a P.h.d but I read that median pay is 60,000 dollars a year. If I prepare for the worst then I figure Ill make about 40,000 a year. Is this a liveable wage? Plus whatever my girlfriend ends up making?  <response>: Depends on where you are. 40,000 a year in NY would be painful. 40,000 in Appalachia would probably be OK. Also depends on how much debt you accrue getting the degree. 40,000 with no debt may not be horrible. Same salary with 100,000 in student loan debt would be torture. 