degree completion IHEP

New data reveals 10 stunning facts on national attainment rates


Report includes first-ever data on postsecondary certificates; breaks down most recent Census data to provide comprehensive picture of attainment.

Looking to provide evidence of “high-quality” learning within credentials among U.S. citizens, a report released today by the Lumina Foundation reveals specific data on national postsecondary attainment rates—broken down into type of certifications and degrees, geography and ethnicity.

The annual report, now in its seventh year, uses Census data to track progress in degree attainment rates on a national scale in all 50 states, trickling down to the county level. What makes this year’s report special is the first-ever inclusion of national and state-specific data estimates showing Americans’ attainment of “high-quality” postsecondary certificates.

The inclusion of this data comes at a turning point in the country’s evolution of higher education, as alternative pathways and indicators of skill move beyond the traditional four-year bachelor’s degree.

“What matter for us—and what is genuinely important in the vital effort to meet the nation’s need for talent—isn’t so much the credential itself,” writes Jamie Merisotis, president and CEO of the Lumina Foundation. “What matters is the learning inherent in that credential: the knowledge, skills and abilities a student has developed while earning it.”

It’s a sentiment increasingly mirrored across the country as well. According to data from a 2015 Gallup-Lumina Foundation Study of the American Public’s Opinion on Higher Education [full report to be released this week], 54 percent of U.S. adults surveyed believe that “students working to earn a certificate to use in the workforce” describes college education—up significantly from 40 percent just a year ago.

But is the national support for, and growth of certificate-based attainment enough to reach Lumina’s Goal 2025 that calls for 60 percent of Americans to hold a degree, certificate or other high-quality postsecondary credential by the year 2025?

(Next page: 10 facts from the attainment rates report)

The newest data on postsecondary certificate attainment comes from NORC at the University of Chicago. The nationally representative survey data reveals that 4.9 percent of Americans hold high-quality postsecondary certificates.

Other statistics include:

  1. With the inclusion of NORC’s data, overall postsecondary attainment is at 45.3 percent nationally. However, the current rates of year-to-year increase is “not sufficient to achieve the Foundation’s Goal 2025,” notes the report. “In fact, the U.S. is projected to fall short of that number by 10.9 million people if the pace continues unchanged.”
  2. 40.4 percent of working-age Americans ages 25-64 held high-quality two- or four-year degrees in 2014 (the latest U.S. Census data available), which is up slightly from 40 percent even in 2013.
  3. According to the Gallup-Lumina Foundation study, 58 percent of Americans believe it is important to increase the proportion of the U.S. population with a degree or credential beyond high school. That belief is even stronger among minority populations, with 71 percent of Hispanics and 70 percent and African Americans expressing that view. Still, though overall higher education enrollment in the U.S. is 15.2 million, just slightly over 5 million (roughly one-third) of students enrolled in postsecondary programs are Hispanic, African American or Native American.
  4. Of American ages 25-64 who have a postsecondary degree, nearly 9 percent have earned an associate degree, 20 percent have earned a bachelor’s degree, and 11.5 percent have achieved graduate or professional degrees.
  5. An estimated 26 percent of working-age Americans have earned a high school diploma or equivalent as of 2014, with 21.5 percent reporting some college experience, but no degree.
  6. While 59 percent of Americans believe education beyond high school is available to anyone, only 24 percent think it is affordable to all.
  7. According to the Gallup-Lumina Foundation study, 70 percent of Americans strongly agree or agree that having a degree or professional certificate is essential to getting a good job; and 71 percent agree that employers value the knowledge and skills a degree represents.
  8. So far, 26 states have “set rigorous and challenging individual attainment goals,” says the report, and “most states committed to increasing attainment are taking concrete steps, such as implementing outcomes-based funding, improving developmental education, and making higher education more affordable to reach their goals.”
  9. The five states with the highest attainment rates are: Massachusetts (55 percent), Colorado (54 percent), Connecticut (53.2 percent), Minnesota (52.9 percent), and Washington (51.6 percent).
  10. The five state with the lowest attainment rates are: West Virginia (33 percent), Nevada (35 percent), Mississippi (36 percent), Alabama (36.7 percent), and Idaho (37.7 percent).

“The secret to individual and societal success is talent—the knowledge, skills, and abilities of our citizens— but right now, our nation lacks sufficient talent to meet the demands of the global job market,” said Merisotis in a statement. “Many of those who see education beyond high school as valuable and essential aren’t able to attain postsecondary credentials in today’s environment. Closing that gap, or increasing attainment equity, is an economic imperative, and will require a shift in the way we think about higher education to include and better serve non-traditional learners.”

The Foundation urges higher education stakeholders to use the report, and its additional tools available online, to help boost attainment rates.

For more data on the national attainment rate, including additional break-downs and methodology, as well as for additional tools, read “A Stronger Nation.”

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