The percentage of college-educated adults from ACS data refers to the proportion of adults aged 25 and older who have completed a Bachelor’s degree or higher, including those with graduate or professional degrees. Percent Grad School Educated refers specifically to the percentage of adults aged 25 and older who have completed a graduate or professional degree (such as a Master’s, Doctorate, or professional school degree).
Why does this matter?
- Predictor of Urban Growth
- A leading study by Edward Glaeser and Albert Saiz, published by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), finds that the percentage of workers with college degrees is a powerful predictor of urban growth. Cities with higher shares of college-educated residents tend to experience significantly greater economic success, resilience to economic shocks, and overall prosperity.1
- Increase in Wages
- A one percentage point increase in the supply of college graduates raises wages for high school dropouts by 1.9%, for high school graduates by 1.6%, and for college graduates by 0.4%—demonstrating broad economic spillovers from higher college attainment in cities.2
- The average bachelor’s degree holder contributes $278,000 more to local economies over a lifetime than a high school graduate, through both direct earnings and consumption.3
1 Education level drives city growth. National Bureau of Economic Reserch, June 2004. https://www.nber.org/digest/jun04/education-level-drives-city-growth
2 Moretti, Enrico, 20024, Estimating the social return to higher education: evidence from longitudinal and repeated cross-sectional data, Journal of Econometrics, Volume 121, Issues 1-2, Pages 175-212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeconom.2003.10.015
3 Rothwell, J. (2015b, November 17). What colleges do for local economies: A direct measure based on consumption. Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/articles/what-colleges-do-for-local-economies-a-direct-measure-based-on-consumption/