Many college graduates who earn less than their peers are employed in occupations that bring significant benefits to society, as well as high levels of personal satisfaction. It is not easy--nor is there agreement on how--to precisely define the social value of these occupations or to measure the magnitude and distribution of their benefits--but understanding this issue is critical to considering the payoff to higher education. This paper explores these low wage, high social value occupations in the context of defining and measuring postsecondary value. It begins by outlining variations in wages for occupations that require similar levels of education and then discusses the relationship between college major, gender, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and occupation choice, as well as the importance of examining the total compensation associated with these occupations. The paper concludes with recommendations for how to measure the value of these low-wage, high social value careers as well as how to incorporate the value of these careers into the Postsecondary Value Framework.