Young adults are earning college degrees at a record rate. Why?

Stacy Teicher Khadaroo:

The portion of young adults in the United States who have completed a four-year college degree hit a record high in 2012. A full third of 25-to-29-year-olds now hold degrees.

Ninety percent have completed high school or an equivalent credential, and 63 percent have done some college course work - both peak rates as well.

Progress in "educational attainment ... has a lot of implications, both for the wealth and well-being of the young adults themselves ... and [for] the productivity of the workforce and future economic growth," says Richard Fry, a senior research associate at the Pew Research Center and coauthor of its new report on the subject.

For years, the idea has been growing that college is as necessary as high school was 40 years ago. In 2010, 75 percent of Americans said college was very important, compared with just 36 percent in 1978, the report notes.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at December 1, 2012 1:30 AM
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