The U.S. Census Bureau has released new American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates showing notable increases in educational attainment across metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas. The percentage of adults aged 25 and over with at least a bachelor’s degree in metropolitan areas rose from 34.2% during the 2015-2019 period to 37.8% for 2020-2024.
“Over the last five years, we’ve noticed a significant increase in the percentage of adults completing higher education,” said Erik Hernandez, a Census Bureau statistician. “Approximately 89% of metro areas experienced an increase in the percentage of population 25 years and over with a bachelor’s degree or higher when compared to the 2015-2019 period.”
Among metropolitan areas, Durham-Chapel Hill, North Carolina, saw one of the largest gains, increasing from 45.3% to 53.4%. In contrast, Springfield, Massachusetts was the only metro area to experience a decline, dropping from 32.8% to 29.3%.
In micropolitan statistical areas, about half also saw growth in educational attainment among adults aged 25 and over with a bachelor’s degree or higher. Taos, New Mexico had one of the most significant increases, rising from 28.7% to 38.5%.
The data also examined changes by field of study among college graduates age 25 and older:
– In education fields, Gadsden, Alabama had one of the largest increases (24.5% to 29.1%), while Elizabethtown, Kentucky saw a decrease (19.0% to 13.0%).
– For science and engineering degrees, Enid, Oklahoma recorded an increase from 24.8% to 33%, whereas Carson City, Nevada dropped from 37.6% to 31%.
– In arts and humanities fields, Carson City experienced an increase (19.5% to 27.5%), while Enid saw a decrease (21.7% to 15.6%).
The ACS is recognized as the only source for local estimates on more than forty topics related to people and housing in the United States.
Additional findings from this release include changes in income and poverty rates:
– The U.S median household income for the period was $80,734.
– Adjusted for inflation (to dollars as of January 2024), median household income increased by approximately four percent between the two periods measured.
– Most counties did not see statistically significant changes in median household income; however, there were increases in some counties and decreases in others.
– The national poverty rate decreased slightly from the previous period.
– Changes were observed across different age groups: poverty rates declined for children under eighteen but increased for those sixty-five and older.
There were also shifts noted in broadband internet access:
– All metropolitan areas included in both periods showed an increase in households with broadband subscriptions.
– Brownsville-Harlingen, Texas had one of the largest increases—from just under sixty percent up to eighty-four percent.
– A few micropolitan areas saw declines; Greenville, Mississippi had one of the larger drops.
Other demographic trends highlighted include growth in total households among large cities such as New York City and Los Angeles since ACS data collection began covering these periods.
For further details on these statistics or information about how metro and micro areas are defined by federal standards based on population size and commuting patterns visit https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/metro-micro/about.html.
Complete datasets are available through data.census.gov along with handbooks and webinars on accessing survey data via API or summary files.
The Census Bureau will release additional ACS Public Use Microdata Sample files on March 5th next year; full schedule details can be found at https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/news/data-releases.html.
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