In an impressive increase from years past, 39 percent of women in the United States had completed four years or more of college in 2022. This figure is up from 3.8 percent of women in 1940. A significant increase can also be seen in males, with 36.2 percent of the U.S. male population having completed four years or more of college in 2022, up from 5.5 percent in 1940.

4- and 2-year colleges

In the United States, college students are able to choose between attending a 2-year postsecondary program and a 4-year postsecondary program. Generally, attending a 2-year program results in an Associate’s Degree, and 4-year programs result in a Bachelor’s Degree.

Many 2-year programs are designed so that attendees can transfer to a college or university offering a 4-year program upon completing their Associate’s. Completion of a 4-year program is the generally accepted standard for entry-level positions when looking for a job.

Earnings after college

Factors such as gender, degree achieved, and the level of postsecondary education can have an impact on employment and earnings later in life. Some Bachelor’s degrees continue to attract more male students than female, particularly in STEM fields, while liberal arts degrees such as education, languages and literatures, and communication tend to see higher female attendance.

All of these factors have an impact on earnings after college, and despite nearly the same rate of attendance within the American population between males and females, men with a Bachelor’s Degree continue to have higher weekly earnings on average than their female counterparts.

In the academic year of 2020/21, about 860,760 male and 1.2 million female students earned a Bachelor's degree in the United States. By the academic year of 2031/32, the number of male Bachelor's degree recipients is expected to reach 975,020.

Bachelor’s degrees in the United States

American students typically earn a Bachelor’s degree for an undergraduate course of study and it is normally completed in four years. Depending on the major, students receive a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Business Administration, Bachelor of Fine Arts, or another type of certificate.

In 2021, about 1.17 million white students earned a Bachelor's degree, followed by 324,848 Hispanic students.

Bachelor's degrees and earnings

When looking at the mean income of Bachelor’s degree holders in 2021, there are marked differences between the female and male Bachelor’s degree holders. Men with a Bachelor’s degree earned about 107,315 U.S. dollars per year, compared to women, who earned 77,099 U.S. dollars per year. In addition, salaries tended to increase the more educated a person was.

In 2021, about 37.7 percent of the U.S. population who were aged 25 and above had graduated from college or another higher education institution, a slight decline from 37.9 the previous year. However, this is a significant increase from 1960, when only 7.7 percent of the U.S. population had graduated from college.

Demographics

Educational attainment varies by gender, location, race, and age throughout the United States. Asian-American and Pacific Islanders had the highest level of education, on average, while Massachusetts and the District of Colombia are areas home to the highest rates of residents with a bachelor’s degree or higher. However, education levels are correlated with wealth. While public education is free up until the 12th grade, the cost of university is out of reach for many Americans, making social mobility increasingly difficult.

Earnings

White Americans with a professional degree earned the most money on average, compared to other educational levels and races. However, regardless of educational attainment, males typically earned far more on average compared to females. Despite the decreasing wage gap over the years in the country, it remains an issue to this day. Not only is there a large wage gap between males and females, but there is also a large income gap linked to race as well.

Graph and download economic data for Bachelor's Degree or Higher (5-year estimate) in York County, PA (HC01ESTVC1742133) from 2010 to 2023 about York County, PA; York; tertiary schooling; educational attainment; PA; education; 5-year; and USA.

In the academic year of 2021/22, almost 2.02 million students were awarded a Bachelor's degree in the United States. This figure is expected to increase to the academic year of 2031/32, when about 2.46 million students are forecasted to be awarded a Bachelor's degree.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate - College Graduates - Master's Degree, 25 to 34 years (CGMD2534) from Jan 2000 to Feb 2025 about master's degree, 25 to 34 years, tertiary schooling, education, unemployment, rate, and USA.

The percentage of persons that have completed, graduated, or received a Bachelor’s or an advanced degree. This is an indicator used to measure the portion of the population having an advanced level of skills needed for the workplace. Persons under the age of 25 are not included in this analysis since many of these persons are still attending various levels of schooling. Source: American Community Survey Years Available: 2007-2011, 2008-2012, 2009-2013, 2010-2014, 2011-2015, 2012-2016, 2013-2017, 2014-2018, 2015-2019, 2016-2020, 2017-2021

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Level - College Graduates - Master's Degree, 25 years and over (CGMDU25O) from Jan 2000 to Feb 2025 about master's degree, 25 years +, tertiary schooling, education, household survey, unemployment, and USA.

The number of graduates from colleges and universities across Taiwan

United States - Unemployment Rate - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 25 to 34 years, Women was 3.10% in February of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Unemployment Rate - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 25 to 34 years, Women reached a record high of 11.00 in July of 2020 and a record low of 1.30 in September of 2019. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Unemployment Rate - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 25 to 34 years, Women - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on March of 2025.

The Recent College Graduates (RCG) survey estimates the potential supply of newly qualified teachers in the United States and explores the immediate post-degree employment and education experiences of individuals obtaining bachelor's or master's degrees from American colleges and universities. The RCG survey, which focuses heavily, but not exclusively, on those graduates qualified to teach at the elementary and secondary levels, is designed to meet the following objectives: (1) to determine how many graduates become eligible or qualified to teach for the first time and how many are employed as teachers in the year following graduation, by teaching field, (2) to examine the relationship between courses taken, student achievement, and occupational outcomes, and (3) to monitor unemployment rates and average salaries of graduates by field of study. The RCG survey collects information on education and employment of all graduates (date of graduation, field of study, whether newly qualified to teach, further enrollment, financial aid, employment status, and teacher employment characteristics), as well as standard demographic characteristics such as earnings, age, marital status, sex, and race/ethnicity.

United States - Unemployment Level - College Graduates - Professional Degree, 20 to 24 years was 3.00000 Thous. of Persons in September of 2024, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Unemployment Level - College Graduates - Professional Degree, 20 to 24 years reached a record high of 9.00000 in June of 2013 and a record low of 0.00000 in December of 2007. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Unemployment Level - College Graduates - Professional Degree, 20 to 24 years - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on February of 2025.

In the 2021/22 academic year, about 4.1 million higher education degrees were earned in the United States. By the 2031/32 academic year, this figure is projected to increase to about 4.83 million degrees.

United States - Unemployment Level - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 16 to 19 years, Men was 11.00000 Thous. of Persons in November of 2024, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Unemployment Level - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 16 to 19 years, Men reached a record high of 13.00000 in August of 2022 and a record low of 0.00000 in September of 2008. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Unemployment Level - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 16 to 19 years, Men - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on March of 2025.

Graph and download economic data for Civilian Labor Force - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 16 years and over, Women (CGBDLW16O) from Jan 2000 to Feb 2025 about females, tertiary schooling, civilian, 16 years +, education, labor force, labor, household survey, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 25 years and over, Women (CGBD25OW) from Jan 2000 to Feb 2025 about females, 25 years +, tertiary schooling, education, unemployment, rate, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Civilian Labor Force - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 25 to 64 years, Men (CGBDLM2564) from Jan 2000 to Feb 2025 about 25 to 64 years, males, tertiary schooling, civilian, education, labor force, labor, household survey, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Employment Level - Bachelor's Degree and Higher, 25 Yrs. & over (LNS12027662) from Jan 1992 to Feb 2025 about 25 years +, tertiary schooling, education, household survey, employment, and USA.

United States - Unemployment Rate - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree and Higher, 20 to 24 years was 5.90% in January of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Unemployment Rate - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree and Higher, 20 to 24 years reached a record high of 20.00 in June of 2020 and a record low of 1.90 in December of 2021. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Unemployment Rate - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree and Higher, 20 to 24 years - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on March of 2025.

United States - Unemployment Rate - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 45 to 54 years, Men was 2.30% in January of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Unemployment Rate - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 45 to 54 years, Men reached a record high of 6.90 in April of 2020 and a record low of 0.80 in May of 2000. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Unemployment Rate - College Graduates - Bachelor's Degree, 45 to 54 years, Men - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on March of 2025.