Question:
What are the trends in the educational level of the United States population?
Response:
Between 1980 and 2011, educational attainment among 25- to 29-year-olds increased: the percentage who had received at least a high school diploma or equivalency increased from 85 to 89 percent, and the percentage who had completed a bachelor's degree or higher increased from 22 to 32 percent. In 2011, some 7 percent of 25- to 29-year-olds had completed a master's degree or higher, a 2-percentage-point increase from 1995.
Between 1980 and 2011, the attainment rate of at least a high school diploma or equivalency increased for Whites (from 89 to 94 percent), Blacks (from 77 to 88 percent), and Hispanics (from 58 to 71 percent). Between 1990 (when educational attainment data were first available for Asians/Pacific Islanders) and 2011, the completion rate for at least high school or equivalency for Asians/Pacific Islanders increased from 90 to 95 percent. In both 1980 and 2011, the percentage of Whites who had completed at least high school or equivalency was higher than that of Blacks and Hispanics; however, the gaps between Whites and Blacks and Whites and Hispanics narrowed over the years. Between 1980 and 2011, the gap between Blacks and Whites decreased from 12 to 6 percentage points, and the gap between Hispanics and Whites decreased from 31 to 23 percentage points.
From 1980 to 2011, the percentage of 25- to 29-year-olds who had attained a bachelor's degree or higher increased from 25 to 39 percent for Whites, from 12 to 20 percent for Blacks, and from 8 to 13 percent for Hispanics. For Asians/Pacific Islanders, the attainment rate of at least a bachelor's degree in 2011 (56 percent) was higher than the rate in 1990 (42 percent). Between 1980 and 2011, the gap in the attainment of a bachelor's degree or higher between Blacks and Whites increased from 13 to 19 percentage points, and the gap between Whites and Hispanics increased from 17 to 26 percentage points.In 2011, some 7 percent of 25- to 29-year-olds had completed at least a master's degree. From 1995 to 2011, the attainment rate of a master's degree or higher increased for Whites (from 5 to 8 percent), Blacks (from 2 to 4 percent), and Asians/Pacific Islanders (from 11 to 17 percent). In 2011, the percentage of Asians/Pacific Islanders who had attained at least a master's degree in 2011 (17 percent) was higher than that of their peers of any other race/ethnicity: 8 percent of Whites, 4 percent of Blacks, and 3 percent of Hispanics. Between 1995 and 2011, the gap in the attainment of a master's degree or higher between Blacks and Whites was not measurably different, while the gap between Whites and Hispanics increased from 4 to 5 percentage points.
Differences in educational attainment by gender have shifted over the past few decades, with female attainment now greater than male attainment at each education level. For example, in 1980, the percentages of males (85 percent) and females (86 percent) who had completed at least high school or equivalency were not measurably different, but in 2011, the percentage of females (91 percent) was higher than the percentage of males (87 percent) by 3 percentage points. The percentage of females (21 percent) who had attained at least a bachelor's degree was 3 points lower than the percentage of males (24 percent) in 1980, but in 2011 the percentage of females (36 percent) was 8 points higher than the percentage of males (28 percent).
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (2012). The Condition of Education 2012 (NCES 2012–045), Indicator 48.
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