More Education: Higher Earnings, Lower Unemployment

New data tell an old story: the more you learn, the more you earn—and the less likely you are to be unemployed. Earnings increase and unemployment decreases with additional years of education. But completing a program is worth more than attending college without earning a degree.

Education pays, in part, because employers believe educated workers learn tasks more easily and are better organized. However, the data here are averages; variations occur at all educational levels. The biggest reason for the variety in earnings is the different occupations people enter as a result of their education.


Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement.