Number of adults in US with college degrees hits new national record - Polidicks

[QUOTE](CNN) – [B]In March 2011, for the first time ever, more than 30% of adults older than 25 had a college degree, according to information released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. As recently as 1998, less than one-quarter of Americans older than 25 held a degree.[/B] The findings are published in a new report, "Educational Attainment in the United States: 2011." This was one in a series of educational reports released today. “This is an important milestone in our history,” Census Bureau Director Robert Groves said. “For many people, education is a sure path to a prosperous life. The more education people have the more likely they are to have a job and earn more money, particularly for individuals who hold a bachelor's degree.” The Census Bureau also published "Educational Attainment in the United States: 2009." This report reveals that in 2009, 85% of adults age 25 or older had at least a high school diploma or its equivalent. It also states that workers with a bachelor’s degree had median earnings of $47,510, about $20,000 more than workers with a high school diploma, who earned about $26,776, and nearly $25,000 more than those with a GED, who earned $22,534. The other available reports are: The "Field of Bachelor’s Degree in the United States: 2009" which provides information on different majors and geographic and earnings data across those fields and "What It’s Worth: Field of Training and Economic Status in 2009," which looks at the relationship between educational attainment, field of training and eventual occupation and earnings.[/QUOTE] Source: [url]http://schoolsofthought.blogs.cnn.com/2012/02/24/census-report-reveals-education-milestone/?hpt=hp_bn1[/url]

Santorum must be terrified. [editline]26th February 2012[/editline] I also didn't really think it'd only be 30%. While it may be a record high, it still seems really low.

What snobs.

Can't say this is really much of a surprise. It seems now you need to pull even more money out of your ass to pay for a master's degree if you want to "stand out" from the other applicants.

[QUOTE=Noble;34888319]Can't say this is really much of a surprise. It seems now you need to pull more even more money out of your ass to pay for a master's degree if you want to "stand out" from the other applicants.[/QUOTE] yeah but then no one hires you when you have a masters because you're over qualified :/ jobs suck

30% is still pretty low, but it's nice to see an increase. Everybody I know (well, almost) around my age is planning on going to college, can't say how many will carry through to get a degree. I, myself, have considered saying fuck it and just going for a military career. But I can definitely see how the numbers are rising, considering a college degree tends to be one of the few things that comes close to giving job security.

Hopefully once our nation gets back on track it'll be above the 50% mark.

Thats going to sky-rocket. Cant get a job nowadays with no degree

[QUOTE=DesumThePanda;34888562]Hopefully once our nation gets back on track it'll be above the 50% mark.[/QUOTE] So long as it's not 100%. As sad as it is to say, there are jobs that need to be done without a college degree, such as basic utility jobs. I can see it now - in the future as college degrees grow, the jobs with higher pay will end up the ones with the need of a college degree because there are zero applicants to them.

30+% is actually a bit too high The more people that have them, the less valuable they become because there's so much competition over jobs that require them. And because of this "You have to get a degree or you fail at life" mentality, colleges are getting a lot looser with grade inflation so that basically anyone can get through and get a degree if they have the cash.

[QUOTE=Meller Yeller;34888655]30+% is actually a bit too high The more people that have them, the less valuable they become because there's so much competition over jobs that require them. And because of this "You have to get a degree or you fail at life" mentality, colleges are getting a lot looser with grade inflation so that basically anyone can get through and get a degree if they have the cash.[/QUOTE] I think it's always been "if you have the money, you have the degree", it's just simply a bit easier these days to do so.

[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;34888677]I think it's always been "if you have the money, you have the degree", it's just simply a bit easier these days to do so.[/QUOTE] I thought it was much, much harder now, since [I]everyone[/I] wants to get a degree.

[QUOTE=A B.A. Survivor;34888694]I thought it was much, much harder now, since [I]everyone[/I] wants to get a degree.[/QUOTE] I doubt colleges would be so picky to take anyone's money in return for a simple degree.

[QUOTE=thrawn2787;34888330]yeah but then no one hires you when you have a masters because you're over qualified :/ jobs suck[/QUOTE] Being "overqualified" for a job always confused me. Its as if some CEO is going "Sorry, we'd rather have a crappier employee but pay him the same wage.".

[QUOTE=thrawn2787;34888330]yeah but then no one hires you when you have a masters because you're over qualified :/ jobs suck[/QUOTE] Tbh I think it's complete and utter bullshit that they would even say that. I'm pretty sure you would be very valuable to them if they did hire you.

[QUOTE=A B.A. Survivor;34888694]I thought it was much, much harder now, since [I]everyone[/I] wants to get a degree.[/QUOTE] It's the opposite. Universities in these kind of economic times kill for students. More students means more federal money and tuition. It also means a significantly larger endowment. The only thing harder now is to get a job because of this. When you have hundreds of thousands of people graduating every year with a degree instead of just a few thousand, you saturate the job market with degrees. Soon it's not going to mean much, it's going to turn into a standard. It's hard to get many top level jobs without a degree, even if you have your foot in the door already at said company.

[QUOTE=nick10510;34888879]Being "overqualified" for a job always confused me. Its as if some CEO is going "Sorry, we'd rather have a crappier employee but pay him the same wage.".[/QUOTE] That's just it. If they have a higher education, then they would have to pay a higher wage.

[QUOTE=nick10510;34888879]Being "overqualified" for a job always confused me. Its as if some CEO is going "Sorry, we'd rather have a crappier employee but pay him the same wage.".[/QUOTE] It's not like that. Business owners have a preconceived notion that people with degrees require greater pay, which they do, this is why they got their degree in the first place. My boss said he needed a new reservationist to book people in condos. I told him I knew the perfect person and that she graduated from FSU (Panama City) with a communications degree (the perfect degree for this kind of job). The first thing he said. "I can't afford her." People with degrees require higher pay.

The more people get educated, the less an educated person is worth. Eventually you'll need a four-year degree and $40k in student loan debt just to break minimum wage...

I hate how you have to go through college in order to get a well paying job in America. 4 years for a degree you read out of a book...

[QUOTE=The Jackal;34889114]I hate how you have to go through college in order to get a well paying job in America. 4 years for a degree you read out of a book...[/QUOTE] I would rather have four years of job experience then book experience for my field of study. I learn better by doing, not by watching.

[QUOTE=The Jackal;34889114]I hate how you have to go through college in order to get a well paying job in America. 4 years for a degree you read out of a book...[/QUOTE] You realize that many universities offer intern work, right? I know that teachers usually [I]must[/I] go to a school and be attached to a teacher to follow while they get their degree. When I was in fourth grade, my class had one of these students. The girl even taught the class a couple times.

[QUOTE=areolop;34889128]I would rather have four years of job experience then book experience for my field of study. I learn better by doing, not by watching.[/QUOTE] Companies look at a degree as a commitment to a field though. Same can be said with job experience, but I guess it's just tradition. I think we all need a balance of book knowledge and experience.

[QUOTE=Funcoot;34889240]Companies look at a degree as a commitment to a field though. Same can be said with job experience, but I guess it's just tradition. I think we all need a balance of book knowledge and experience.[/QUOTE] Reminds me of "American Scholar" by Emerson.

[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;34889178]You realize that many universities offer intern work, right? I know that teachers usually [I]must[/I] go to a school and be attached to a teacher to follow while they get their degree. When I was in fourth grade, my class had one of these students. The girl even taught the class a couple times.[/QUOTE] Not only that, but it's important to build a foundation for things you'll learn later on. Companies don't want to have to teach you everything when you take a position, they expect you to know they basics, so they'll only have to help you understand their procedures.

[QUOTE=Meller Yeller;34888655]30+% is actually a bit too high The more people that have them, the less valuable they become because there's so much competition over jobs that require them. And because of this "You have to get a degree or you fail at life" mentality, colleges are getting a lot looser with grade inflation so that basically anyone can get through and get a degree if they have the cash.[/QUOTE] I'd rather have more people who have taken college courses and know their shit. Education is something everyone should have, not just a few people. And if you're only getting an education to get a job, you're doing it wrong. At least for me, I'd like to better myself while in university. I don't really give a shit about the degree itself and what that means for my job opportunities.

How many of those are psyc?

[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;34888777]I doubt colleges would be so picky to take anyone's money in return for a simple degree.[/QUOTE] Depends. Some colleges are degree mills and just pump out degrees to people who don't really deserve them. Others have standards and make you earn it.

The standards a college has determines it's reputation among employers. For some jobs like computer programming they only really care that you have a degree, not where it's from. If you're trying to be a lawyer, some colleges have a better reputation for weeding out the bad students and others give you a degree as long as you pay them. A law firm is more likely to hire someone from a school like Harvard because of that.

Rise in education due to a drop in educational standards for degrees. I have a bachelor's and I recall one guy in my class that was barely literate. Colleges rush out to accept these students because federal gov't ensures easy student loans and grants, so it's to the colleges' advantage to take in sub-par applicants.