Educational attainment in the United States

The educational attainment of the U.S. population means the highest level of schooling a person has finished. In the United States, most people have completed secondary education. More people are graduating from college now than in the past.

Information about schooling levels in the United States has been collected every ten years since 1940. Reports show these levels by age, sex, race, and where people live. Details are also available for different parts of the country and individual states.

People with more education in the United States often have higher incomes and wealth. This shows how important education can be for a person’s future.

General attainment of degrees/diplomas

In 2018, about 90 percent of adults aged 25 or older had finished high school or earned a GED. Over 35 percent had earned at least a bachelor's degree. These numbers are the highest ever recorded. In 2003, the percentage of adults who had finished high school or earned a GED rose to 84 percent for the first time since 2000, showing a steady increase since 1947.

Since 1983, the share of people who either finished high school or earned a GED has grown from 85 percent to 90 percent. The biggest jumps in education levels happened in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Back then, about half of adults had finished high school. Today, about 90 percent of adults aged 25 to 30 have either finished high school or earned a GED.

Gender

Over the past fifty years, how boys and girls do in school in the United States has changed a lot. In the 1970s and 1980s, girls often did worse than boys, especially in math and science.

Today, girls usually get better grades and are more likely to finish college. But boys often do better on tests and are more likely to choose jobs that pay well, like in science, technology, engineering, and math.

More education helps both boys and girls get jobs, but it may help girls a little more. Some girls choose not to continue their education because they plan to take care of a family instead of focusing on a career.

Girls have also done better than boys in reading and writing for a long time. This difference starts small in elementary school but gets bigger as students get older. By the time students are in 12th grade, girls are often much ahead of boys in these subjects.

Overall, more girls than boys finish high school and earn college degrees. In recent years, women have earned most associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees. But more men earn professional and doctoral degrees.

The growth in education levels has been a bit larger for some groups than others. For example, African American and white communities have seen growth, but some groups still have trouble getting higher education.

Ethnicity and race

Further information: Racial achievement gap in the United States

In the 1990s, more people in the United States finished school, but some groups still had lower rates. For example, fewer than 80% of Hispanics finished high school. Some Hispanic families moved to the U.S. before finishing school in their home countries.

Asian Americans usually had the highest education levels, with about half having a bachelor's degree. Next were non-Hispanic whites, then non-Hispanic blacks, and Hispanics or Latinos had the lowest rates. At the high school level, most groups finished, but only about half of Hispanics or Latinos did.

Immigrants

Some people born outside the U.S., like those from Asia, Europe, and Africa, often finished more school than those born in the U.S. For example, many African immigrants have college degrees. But this is not true for all groups. Many Hispanic immigrants did not finish high school, which affects the overall education level for this group. However, Hispanic people born in the U.S. often finish more school than immigrants.

Income

People who have more education usually earn more money in the United States. For example, someone with a high school diploma might earn about $30,000 a year, while someone with a bachelor's degree could earn over $50,000. People with advanced degrees often earn even more.

Income also changes over time based on education level. Since 1991, people with bachelor's degrees or higher have seen their incomes go up, but those with less education have seen their incomes go down. Different racial and ethnic groups also have different income levels, even with the same education. For example, European Americans often earn more than other groups at each education level.

Occupation

Jobs that need skilled workers are growing. This means more people with good education can find work. But people with less education may have a harder time getting good jobs. They often earn less money and may lose their jobs more easily. In the future, many of these jobs might be replaced by machines.

Different jobs need different levels of education. Jobs like professional/managerial usually need a college degree. Most people in these jobs finished high school, many went to college, and many have a bachelor's degree or higher. Other jobs, like agriculture, construction, manufacturing, often need less education. Many workers in these blue collar jobs did not finish high school or go to college.

Overall, jobs that need the least education are in agriculture. Many workers here did not finish high school or go to college. While professional jobs are the largest group, jobs with less education make up a bigger part of the workforce.

Religion

The Pew Research Center’s 2014 Religious Landscape Study showed that education levels differ among various religious groups.

Being part of a religious group often connects with certain demographics and places, so it’s not the only reason for these education differences. Some studies have found that Jewish people usually have the highest education levels, while Catholics and mainline Protestants are in the middle, and fundamentalist groups tend to have lower education levels. Researchers noted that education levels for religious groups can change over time. For example, Christian men from older generations had lower education levels, but this improved in later generations for most groups.

Geography

The education levels of people aged 25 and older vary a bit depending on where they live in the United States. The Northeastern United States, with the smallest population of about thirty-six million, has the most people who finished high school and college. The western United States has the most people who started college or earned a two-year degree, and it ranks second for college graduates. The South, with the largest population of about sixty-six million, has the lowest education levels at every stage.

The Midwest has the highest percentage of high school graduates. It also has the second-highest percentage of people who started college or earned a two-year degree, and the third-highest percentage of people with a bachelor's degree or higher.

Social class and education

Educational attainment is one of the main ways people measure social class in the United States. Having a high level of education is important because it helps people get good jobs and earn more money. Finishing a graduate degree, which usually takes about seven to eight years after high school, is often needed to join what is called the "professional middle class."

Education is a big key to joining the American middle class and living a more comfortable life. People with higher education usually earn more than those without it. However, even those with advanced education can sometimes lose their jobs, especially when companies cut back or replace full-time workers with part-time ones. This has been seen in colleges and universities, where many faculty members now work part-time or on short-term contracts.

Educational attainment in social theory

Bourdieu and cultural capital

Many people study how education in the United States affects different groups. In 1977, Pierre Bourdieu said that schools often help students from wealthier families more. These students have something called "cultural capital." This means they know the ways of thinking and behaving that schools like.

When people from wealthier families finish school, they often get good jobs with good pay. Others who do not finish school or do not have the same skills often end up with jobs that pay less.

Lareau and concerted cultivation

Annette Lareau looked at why some children get more help with school than others. She called this help "concerted cultivation." This means that parents with more money and time often plan many activities to help their children learn. Concerted cultivation is something that middle-class parents usually do, but parents with less money often cannot.

Because of this, children from families with less money may feel less comfortable at school. They might not feel as entitled to ask for help or get the same chances as children from wealthier families. This can make it harder for them to get the same education.

Collins and credentialism

Randall Collins talked about something called credentialism. He thought that schools often teach values that favor people from wealthier families. In this way, schools help separate students, putting some into special schools where they learn to take on important jobs later.