WASHINGTON, March 30, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- More
than one-third of the adult population in the United States has a bachelor's degree or
higher marking the first time in decades of data.
"The percentage rose to 33.4 percent in 2016, a significant
milestone since the Current Population Survey began collecting
educational attainment in 1940," said Kurt
Bauman, Chief of the Education and Social Stratification
Branch. "In 1940, only 4.6 percent had reached that level of
education."
In 2010, less than 30 percent of those 25 and older had
completed a bachelor's degree or higher, and in 2006, 28 percent
had reached that level of education.
These findings come from the U.S. Census Bureau's Educational
Attainment in the United States: 2016 table package that uses
statistics from the Current Population Survey Annual Social and
Economic Supplement to examine the educational attainment of adults
ages 25 and older by demographic and social characteristics, such
as age, sex, race and Hispanic origin, nativity and disability
status.
The data also found that the average earnings in 2016 for those
ages 25 and older whose highest educational attainment was high
school were $35,615. The average
earnings for those with a bachelor's degree were $65,482 compared with $92,525 for those with an advanced degree.
Other highlights:
- The Asian and non-Hispanic white populations were more likely
to hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 55.9 percent and 37.3
percent, respectively, when compared with the black population at
23.3 percent and the Hispanic population at 16.4 percent in
2016.
- Of the U.S. population 25 years and older, 89.1 percent had
completed high school (or equivalent) or more education in 2016. A
decade earlier, in 2006, 85.5 percent had completed high school or
more education.
- In 2016, average earnings for males age 25 and older whose
highest educational attainment was high school were $41,942. By comparison, average earnings among
females in this category in 2016 were $26,832.
- In 2016, average earnings for males age 25 and older with a
bachelor's degree were $79,927. By
comparison, average earnings for females in this category in 2016
were $50,856.
- Bachelor's degree attainment varied by citizenship and
nativity. The native born were more likely than the foreign-born to
have a bachelor's degree or higher (33.6 percent vs 32.4 percent).
Among the foreign-born, 38.4 percent of naturalized citizens had a
bachelor's degree or higher, compared with 26.5 percent of
noncitizens.
The Current Population Survey, sponsored jointly by the U.S.
Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, is the
primary source of labor force statistics for the population of
the United States.
Frances Alonzo
Random Samplings
Blog
Graphic | JPG | PDF |
Public Information
Office
301-763-3030 /
pio@census.gov
census.gov
Connect with us on Social media
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/census-bureau-highest-educational-levels-reached-by-adults-in-the-us-since-1940-300432109.html
SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau