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NCES report reveals relationship between education and earnings
June 10, 2020
Although it's still unclear how the pandemic will impact college attendance, the enrollment rate had been on an upward trend and the correlation between education level and earnings continues to be strong, according to a recently released federal report.
The report, released in May by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), states the overall college enrollment rate for 18-to-24-year-olds had increased from 35 percent in 2000 to 41 percent in 2018. "The Condition of Education 2020," a congressionally mandated report, presents 47 indicators under four areas: pre-primary, elementary, and secondary education; postsecondary education; population characteristics and economic outcomes; and international comparisons.
Among the postsecondary data, educational attainment rates for 25- to 29-year-olds increased at all levels between 2000 and 2019. During this time, the percentage with high school completion or higher increased from 88% to 94%, the percentage with an associate's degree or higher increased from 38% to 49%, the percentage with a bachelor's degree or higher increased from 29% to 39%, and the percentage with a master's degree or higher increased from 5% to 9%.
According to the report, the data indicates postsecondary educational activities can have strong relationships with long-term life outcomes. For 25- to 34-year-olds who worked full time, year round in 2018, higher educational attainment was associated with higher median earnings. This pattern was consistent from 2000 through 2018. In 2018, the median earnings of 25- to 34-year-olds with a master's or higher degree ($65,000) were 19 percent higher than the earnings of those with a bachelor's degree ($54,700), and the median earnings of those with a bachelor's degree were 57 percent higher than the earnings of high school completers ($34,900). Similar to the earnings pattern, the employment rate in 2019 was higher for 25- to 34-year-olds with higher levels of educational attainment than for those with lower levels of educational attainment.
In 2017-18, the average net price of attendance (total cost minus grant and scholarship aid) for first-time, full-time undergraduate students attending four-year institutions was $13,700 at public institutions, compared with $27,000 at private nonprofit institutions and $22,100 at private for-profit institutions (in constant 2018-19 dollars). See Price of Attending an Undergraduate Institution.
For a snapshot of key information, check out the "Executive Summary" and "At a Glance" options.