I obtained a PhD in pure math 30 years ago, and promptly went into computing with no programming skills.

Mathematics allowed me to see things in a more general light, appreciate the importance of elegant code, and work on interesting problems that others might find difficult (eg. graph-theoretic constructions, encryption, etc.).

And it's really nice to formulate and prove your own theorems just to make your code work.

Putting a $ figure on higher education is like setting the value of a hair transplant.