Getting an Education - Educational Attainment And Earnings

The educational attainment of the U.S. population has risen steadily since the 1940s. In 2003 84.6% of adults

TABLE 6.3

Percent of children ages 3–5 years old enrolled in center-based early childhood care and education programs, by child and family characteristics, 1991 and 2001
Characteristic	1991	2001
1Children from racial/ethnic groups other than white, black, and Hispanic are included in the totals but not shown separately.
Note: Estimates are based on children who had not entered kindergarten. Center-based programs include day care centers, Head Start, preschool, nursery school, prekindergarten, and other early childhood programs. Children without mothers in the home are not included in estimates concerning mother's education or mother's employment status.
SOURCE: Adapted from "Table 1-1. Percent of Children Ages 3–5 Who Were Enrolled in Center-Based Early Childhood Care and Education Programs, by Child and Family Characteristics: Selected Years 1991–2001," in The Condition of Education 2002, National Center for Education Statistics, 2002, http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/2002/section1/tables/t01_1.asp (accessed September 16, 2004)
Total1	52.8	56.4
Age
3 years	42.3	43.0
4 years	60.4	66.2
5 years	63.9	72.8
Sex
Male	52.4	53.6
Female	53.2	59.2
Race/ethnicity
White	54.0	59.0
Black	58.3	63.7
Hispanic	38.8	39.8
Poverty status
Below poverty	44.2	46.7
At or above poverty	55.7	59.1
Poverty status and race/ethnicity
Below poverty
White	41.0	46.1
Black	55.4	60.1
Hispanic	34.4	36.2
At or above poverty
White	56.4	60.8
Black	61.8	66.2
Hispanic	42.2	42.4
Family type
Two parents	53.7	56.5
One or no parent	49.7	56.1
Mother's education
Less than high school	31.5	38.3
High school diploma or equivalent	45.8	47.1
Some college, including vocational/technical	60.2	62.0
Bachelor's degree or higher	71.9	69.5
Mother's employment status
Worked 35 hours or more per week	59.3	62.9
Worked less than 35 hours per week	58.0	61.4
Looking for work	43.2	46.9
Not in labor force	45.3	46.8

older than twenty-five had graduated from high school—the highest number ever. More than one in four (27.2%) had earned a bachelor's degree or more. (See Figure 6.4.)

The level of educational attainment has traditionally been higher for men than for women. In 2003, however, for the second year in a row, the high school graduation rate for women ages twenty-five and over (85%) exceeded that of men (84.1%). (See Table 6.4.) The 2002 difference was the first statistically significant one in high school graduation rates between men and women since 1989. In 2003 28.9% of men and 25.7% of women had obtained bachelor's degrees or higher. Although college attainment had increased since 1990 for both men and women, women were narrowing the gap and making faster gains then men.

FIGURE 6.4

Educational attainment also varied by race and ethnic origin. Non-Hispanic whites were most likely to complete high school (89.4%), followed by Asians (87.6%), African-Americans (80%), and Hispanics (57%). (See Table 6.4 and Figure 6.5.) Asians were by far the most likely to be college graduates (49.8%), followed by non-Hispanic whites (30%), African-Americans (17.3%), and Hispanics (11.4%).

Earning levels rise with increased education. For people ages eighteen or older who had not finished high school the average annual income in 2002 was $18,826. (See Table 6.5.) High school graduates earned an average income of $27,280, and people with some college or an associate degree earned an average income of $31,046. The incomes of college graduates increased with the level of the degree earned. People with a bachelor's degree had mean earnings of $51,194, while holders of advanced degrees earned an average of $72,824.

These averages differed considerably by gender and race or ethnicity. On average, women earned sixty-two cents for every dollar men earned. (See Table 6.5.) The most highly educated women earned the least compared to their male counterparts—fifty-six cents for every dollar

TABLE 6.4

Educational attainment of the population 25 years and over, by age, sex, race, ethnicity, nativity, marital status, and region, 2003
	Number of people (in thousands)	High school graduate or more	Some college or more	Bachelor's degree or more
Characteristic		Percent	Percent	Percent
SOURCE: Nicole Stoops, "Table A. Summary Measures of the Educational Attainment of the Population 25 Years and Over: 2003," in Educational Attainment in the United States: 2003, Current Population Reports, P20–550, U.S. Census Bureau, June 2004, http://www.census.gov/prod/2004pubs/p20-550.pdf (accessed September 16, 2004)
Population 25 years and over	185,183	84.6	52.5	27.2
Age group:
25 to 29 years	18,721	86.5	57.4	28.4
30 to 34 years	20,521	87.6	58.6	31.5
35 to 39 years	21,284	87.6	56.5	29.8
40 to 44 years	22,790	88.4	56.5	29.1
45 to 49 years	21,420	89.3	57.4	29.9
50 to 54 years	18,814	88.7	58.9	31.1
55 to 59 years	15,470	86.9	55.1	29.0
60 to 64 years	11,930	83.0	47.3	24.5
65 to 69 years	9,438	76.9	39.1	19.6
70 to 74 years	8,673	72.8	36.4	18.5
75 years and over	16,123	67.5	32.4	15.4
Sex:
Men	88,597	84.1	53.2	28.9
Women	96,586	85	51.0	25.7
Race and origin:
White alone	153,188	85.1	52.9	27.6
Non-Hispanic white alone	133,488	89.4	56.4	30.0
Black alone	20,527	80.0	44.7	17.3
Asian alone	7,691	87.6	67.4	49.8
Hispanic (of any race)	21,189	57.0	29.6	11.4
Nativity:
Native	158,128	87.5	87.5	54.2
Foreign born	27,055	67.2	42.7	27.2
Marital status:
Never married	28,694	84.9	54.8	29.0
Married spouse present	113,748	87.0	55.9	30.5
Married spouse absent	7,389	72.5	38.2	16.1
Separated	4,447	74.5	38.6	13.8
Widowed	13,970	67.2	30.3	12.5
Divorced	21,382	86.5	50.9	21.0
Region:
Northeast	36,182	85.7	50.7	30.3
Midwest	41,728	87.8	52.5	26.0
South	66,071	82.2	50.1	25.3
West	41,202	84.0	58.1	28.7

the men earned. The disparity between races and ethnic groups was not as pronounced. Annual earnings for high school graduates ranged from $28,756 for non-Hispanic whites to $22,823 for African-Americans. For college graduates earnings ranged from $40,949 for Hispanics to $53,185 for non-Hispanic whites.