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Chapter 8. State Indicators

Higher Education

Bachelor’s Degrees Conferred per 1,000 Individuals 18–24 Years Old



Findings

  • In 2011, more than 1.7 million bachelor’s degrees were conferred nationally in all fields, which is up from 1.2 million in 2001 and represents an increase of 38%.
  • Between 2001 and 2011, the number of bachelor’s degrees conferred per 1,000 individuals 18–24 years old in the population has increased by more than 24% nationwide.
  • In 2011, state values on this indicator varied greatly. They ranged from 22.9 to 116.6 bachelor’s degrees conferred per 1,000 individuals 18–24 years old.
  • Except in the District of Columbia and Montana, the number of bachelor’s degrees conferred per 1,000 individuals 18–24 years old increased in all jurisdictions between 2001 and 2011.


Description

Educational attainment gives people greater opportunities to work in higher-paying jobs than are generally available to those with less education. Earning a bachelor’s degree also prepares them for advanced education.

Educational attainment varies by several demographic characteristics including age. The cohort 18–24 years old was chosen to approximate the age range of most students who are pursuing an undergraduate degree. This indicator represents the extent to which the 18–24-year-old population has earned a bachelor’s degree.

The number of bachelor’s degrees awarded is based on an actual count provided by the National Center for Education Statistics. Estimates of the population aged 18–24 years are provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. Small differences in the indicator value between states or across time generally are not meaningful.

A high value for this indicator may suggest the successful provision of educational opportunity at this level. Student mobility after graduation is not accounted for, which may make this indicator less meaningful in predicting the qualifications of a state’s future workforce. A state’s value for this indicator may also be high when its higher education system draws a large percentage of out-of-state students—a situation characteristic of the District of Columbia and of some states with small resident populations.


Data Table

 
Table 8-17
Bachelor’s degrees conferred per 1,000 individuals 18–24 years old, by state: 2001, 2006, and 2011
 
Bachelor’s degrees Population 18–24 years old Degrees/1,000 individuals
18–24 years old
State 2001 2006 2011 2001 2006 2011 2001 2006 2011
 
United States 1,244,171 1,485,242 1,715,913 27,992,652 29,602,839 31,067,478 44.4 50.2 55.2
Alabama 20,823 21,995 27,248 447,963 459,114 482,405 46.5 47.9 56.5
Alaska 1,338 1,573 1,770 61,774 74,369 77,271 21.7 21.2 22.9
Arizona 20,856 32,708 50,928 536,018 591,986 643,726 38.9 55.3 79.1
Arkansas 9,628 11,340 13,259 268,131 273,882 287,131 35.9 41.4 46.2
California 123,382 151,021 169,623 3,488,933 3,700,882 3,975,377 35.4 40.8 42.7
Colorado 22,272 28,554 30,570 453,712 477,387 498,956 49.1 59.8 61.3
Connecticut 14,245 17,997 19,970 278,499 310,891 333,524 51.1 57.9 59.9
Delaware 4,504 5,410 5,877 78,530 84,759 92,520 57.4 63.8 63.5
District of Columbia 8,166 10,556 8,402 72,568 76,839 84,786 112.5 137.4 99.1
Florida 52,557 69,899 86,281 1,401,785 1,652,892 1,773,048 37.5 42.3 48.7
Georgia 28,790 36,332 45,075 866,190 915,634 996,088 33.2 39.7 45.3
Hawaii 4,896 5,813 5,751 120,970 131,489 133,388 40.5 44.2 43.1
Idaho 4,646 7,781 9,171 144,212 153,844 155,895 32.2 50.6 58.8
Illinois 55,633 68,016 71,580 1,230,513 1,238,706 1,246,926 45.2 54.9 57.4
Indiana 31,881 38,093 43,519 628,372 638,724 656,136 50.7 59.6 66.3
Iowa 18,652 21,435 36,266 303,271 312,319 310,985 61.5 68.6 116.6
Kansas 14,734 16,731 18,191 282,851 296,431 291,056 52.1 56.4 62.5
Kentucky 15,434 18,646 21,078 411,270 405,029 418,168 37.5 46.0 50.4
Louisiana 19,990 19,936 21,509 485,975 459,662 474,817 41.1 43.4 45.3
Maine 5,429 6,544 7,347 107,177 117,346 116,333 50.7 55.8 63.2
Maryland 23,001 26,685 30,264 470,318 525,903 567,560 48.9 50.7 53.3
Massachusetts 42,792 47,074 53,749 594,747 637,145 685,891 71.9 73.9 78.4
Michigan 46,115 51,756 56,217 955,459 975,541 986,710 48.3 53.1 57.0
Minnesota 23,355 28,927 33,386 486,444 517,679 505,955 48.0 55.9 66.0
Mississippi 11,232 11,803 13,230 316,243 306,076 308,468 35.5 38.6 42.9
Missouri 30,102 35,161 41,648 552,622 583,691 591,301 54.5 60.2 70.4
Montana 5,183 5,118 5,512 89,343 99,357 96,660 58.0 51.5 57.0
Nebraska 10,782 12,150 13,510 178,947 188,966 183,949 60.3 64.3 73.4
Nevada 4,358 6,595 7,556 190,232 229,614 250,650 22.9 28.7 30.1
New Hampshire 7,254 8,030 9,479 107,717 121,400 125,008 67.3 66.1 75.8
New Jersey 26,948 32,251 37,087 690,374 729,181 779,067 39.0 44.2 47.6
New Mexico 6,551 7,491 8,179 184,493 202,027 206,918 35.5 37.1 39.5
New York 97,415 113,094 128,472 1,802,422 1,869,014 1,996,795 54.0 60.5 64.3
North Carolina 34,767 39,969 48,670 824,717 876,910 953,966 42.2 45.6 51.0
North Dakota 4,688 5,487 5,674 76,459 85,992 83,807 61.3 63.8 67.7
Ohio 50,856 58,522 63,882 1,079,689 1,083,220 1,106,053 47.1 54.0 57.8
Oklahoma 15,932 18,909 19,511 369,614 381,715 385,762 43.1 49.5 50.6
Oregon 13,887 17,631 19,542 337,357 350,178 362,400 41.2 50.3 53.9
Pennsylvania 66,514 79,791 88,205 1,121,223 1,200,427 1,269,203 59.3 66.5 69.5
Rhode Island 8,222 9,636 10,863 109,990 116,788 120,607 74.8 82.5 90.1
South Carolina 16,316 19,313 23,034 418,111 440,769 481,483 39.0 43.8 47.8
South Dakota 4,223 4,850 5,211 79,716 84,428 82,667 53.0 57.4 63.0
Tennessee 22,823 26,330 31,026 563,268 572,909 613,516 40.5 46.0 50.6
Texas 76,074 92,027 107,438 2,283,119 2,463,849 2,628,169 33.3 37.4 40.9
Utah 17,091 20,677 24,461 328,513 322,408 321,208 52.0 64.1 76.2
Vermont 4,697 4,981 6,100 58,845 65,566 65,966 79.8 76.0 92.5
Virginia 32,822 38,775 49,077 706,828 781,520 815,225 46.4 49.6 60.2
Washington 23,441 28,570 31,398 586,456 628,998 665,328 40.0 45.4 47.2
West Virginia 8,704 10,033 12,978 174,409 168,204 170,502 49.9 59.6 76.1
Wisconsin 28,493 31,434 35,279 534,453 564,587 551,418 53.3 55.7 64.0
Wyoming 1,677 1,792 1,860 51,810 56,592 56,730 32.4 31.7 32.8
 
Puerto Rico 15,758 17,129 17,698 429,366 400,529 376,652 36.7 42.8 47.0
 

SOURCES: National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (various years); Census Bureau, 2000 and 2010 Decennial Censuses and Population Estimates Program (various years).

Science and Engineering Indicators 2014


State Data Tool

The state data tool allows interactive exploration of the 58 indicators in this chapter. Users have the ability to choose and explore a single indicator in-depth, compare multiple indicators for preselected groups, customize their own graphics, or download data tables. Click the button below to get started.

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