Educational Attainment in the United States:2017

Find the latest data on educational attainment in the United States for those 18 years and older by age, sex, race, and Hispanic Origin.  
Educational attainment

Profile of the labor force by educational attainment

"Increased education is associated with both higher wages and lower unemployment. This Spotlight on Statistics highlights how that relationship has changed over time and examines additional detail on educational attainment.

The charts and analysis that follow illustrate historical and current statistics from the Current Population Survey on the U.S. labor force for people age 25 years and older by educational attainment, defined as the highest diploma or degree received at the time the survey was conducted..."

Labor force and education

Shift Toward Greater Educational Attainment for Women Began 20 Years Ago

"Statistics from the American Community Survey show women now lead men in college completion (see Women Now at the Head of the Class, Lead Men in College Attainment). Colleges have been graduating more women than men for more than 20 years, but what is new is that the advantage is no longer limited to new graduates and young women. Counting the entire population 25 and older, even women and men who are retired, women are ahead of men in college graduation. That is to say, the average adult woman in the U.S. is more likely to be a college graduate than the average adult man.

In order to better understand this change, the report “Educational Attainment in the United States: 2015” assembles statistics on historical trends in men’s and women’s college graduation. The Current Population Survey has collected data on Americans’ educational attainment since 1967 and provides an unparalleled data set for looking at the education level of the population over a broad period of time..."
Educational attainment

Women Now at the Head of the Class, Lead Men in College Attainment

"In 1940, under 5 percent of the U.S. population held a bachelor’s degree. Men, at 5.5 percent, were more likely than women at 3.8 percent, to have a college education. Although the 1.7 percentage point gap may appear small, it was big relative to the portion of women with bachelor’s degrees (it would have taken a 45 percent increase among women for them to match men).

Now, nearly 75 years after the Census Bureau began collecting these statistics, the educational attainment of our population has increased to 30 percent -and the gender balance has shifted. For the first time since measurement began in 1940, women were more likely than men to have a bachelor’s degree..."
College attainment

Educational Attainment in the United States: 2014

"Educational attainment refers to the highest level of education that an individual has completed. This is distinct from the level of schooling that an individual is attending. See the School Enrollment Web site for information on current attendance.

Data on educational attainment are derived from a single question that asks, "What is the highest grade of school...has completed, or the highest degree...has received?" This question was first implemented in the 1990 Decennial Census and changed in the Current Population Survey in 1992. Prior to this, respondents were asked a two-part question that asked respondents to report the highest grade they had attended, and whether or not they had completed that grade. For more information on the implementation of this change and its effects on the data see the report Measuring Education in the Current Population Survey [PDF - 859k] (Kominski and Siegel, 1993)..."
Education statistics

Educational Attainment in the United States:2013

Find the latest data on educational attainment of the population age 18 and over by age, sex, race, and Hispanic Origin.
Educational attainment

What's It Worth: Field of Training and Economic Status in 2009

"The relationship between educational attainment and economic outcomes is shaped by a variety of educational experience, including field of training, length of time spent in school, and level of attainment. This report explores the relationship between educational attainment, field of training, and eventual occupation and earnings.  The report also explores sex, race, and ethnic difference in educational attainment and difference between people who received a General Educational Development (GED) certificate and a high school diploma..."

More Working Women Than Men Have College Degrees, Census Bureau Reports
"Among the employed population 25 and older, 37 percent of women had attained a bachelor's degree or more as of 2010, compared with 35 percent of men, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau. In contrast, among all adults 25 and older, 29.6 percent of women and 30.3 percent of men had at least a bachelor's degree.

The data come from tabulations on Educational Attainment in the United States: 2010 and not only examine gender differences in attainment but also provide the most detailed information on years of school completed ever presented by the Census Bureau, showing for each level of attainment exactly how many years of education adults have.

"The tabulations permit one to see not only the broad levels of educational attainment adults experienced, but also, for instance, if they did not receive a high school diploma, the specific level of schooling they did reach," said Sonia Collazo, a Census Bureau demographer.

In 2010, 36 percent of the nation's population 25 and older left school before obtaining a degree. This includes 15 percent of the population that didn't earn a regular high school diploma — a group sometimes labeled "dropouts." Among this group were about 1 percent of the population who reached the 12th grade, 2 percent who reached the 11th grade but still did not graduate, and 2 percent who earned a GED..."

Census Bureau Reports Nearly 6 in 10 Advanced Degree Holders
Age 25-29 Are Women
" The U.S. Census Bureau reported today more women than men are expected to occupy professions such as doctors, lawyers and college professors as they represent approximately 58 percent of young adults, age 25 to 29, who hold an advanced degree. In addition, among all adults 25 and older, more women than men had high school diplomas and bachelor’s degrees.

The tabulations, Educational Attainment in the United States: 2009, showed that among people in the 25-29 age group, 9 percent of women and 6 percent of men held either a master’s, professional (such as law or medical) or doctoral degree. This holds true for white, black and Hispanic women. Among Asian men and women of this age group, there was no statistical difference.

The data also demonstrate the extent to which having such a degree pays off: average earnings in 2008 totaled $83,144 for those with an advanced degree, compared with $58,613 for those with a bachelor’s degree only. People whose highest level of attainment was a high school diploma had average earnings of $31,283.

Also included are data on the highest level of education achieved by a wide range of demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, including age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, marital status, household relationship, citizenship, nativity and year of entry. Historical tables provide data on mean earnings by attainment level, sex, race and Hispanic origin with data back to 1975, and tables on attainment levels back to 1940..."