Special Report
College & Workforce Readiness

Linking Learning to Earning

By Lynn Olson — December 29, 2006 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Educating young people to high levels is a moral imperative, but statistics suggest it’s also an economic one—for individuals and for society.

A college graduate in the United States earns, on average, $23,441 more per year than a high school graduate, and $31,595 more than a high school dropout.

College graduates also are more likely than high school graduates to have full-time, year-round employment, and are about 20 percent more likely to be fully employed as those without a high school diploma.

Those statistics don’t even reflect the cost burdens to states in the form of public assistance, publicly financed health insurance, and increased incarceration rates for those who drop out of high school.

A recent study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland found that one of the biggest factors explaining differences in income across states is the educational attainment of their citizens.

Yet, with few exceptions, publicly supported education systems are not well aligned with workforce and economic-development systems at any level of government, according to a report from the New York City-based Workforce Strategy Center. And none of those systems is adequately responsive to the labor market, the center found.

Data Download
Economy and Workforce IndicatorsPDFExcel

A 2006 survey of 431 human-resources officials for the Conference Board, a business-research group based in New York, found that about seven in 10 employers deemed the professionalism and work ethic of high school graduates deficient, as well as their critical-thinking and problem-solving skills. Eight in 10 found the written communications of recent graduates wanting.

Moreover, 28 percent of those surveyed projected that, over the next five years, their companies would reduce the hiring of new entrants with only a high school diploma.

Accompanying Charts

  • The College Advantage Across the nation, adults with bachelor’s degrees earn substantially more than those with only a high school diploma. But that earnings advantage varies by state, according to 2005 data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
BRIC ARCHIVE

  • Rising Attainment Since the early 1970s, the percentage of adults in the workforce who have less than a high school diploma has declined sharply, while the proportion with at least some college has been climbing steadily.
BRIC ARCHIVE

“Greater communication and collaboration between the business sector and educators is critical to ensure that young people are prepared to enter the workplace of the 21st century,” says Richard E. Cavanagh, the president and chief executive officer of the Conference Board. “Less-than-intense preparation in critical skills can lead to unsuccessful futures for America’s youth, as well as a less competitive U.S. workforce.”

Twenty-one states have defined workforce readiness, according to the policy survey of 50 states and the District of Columbia for Quality Counts 2007. Thirty-five states give students the option of earning a standard high school diploma with a concentration or specialization in a career-technical field.

Inadequate workforce readiness has implications far beyond states’ own borders. “The fact is that a school in Ohio is not competing against a school in Michigan,” says James E. Whaley, the president of the Iselin, N.J.-based Siemens Foundation. “It’s competing against a school in Shanghai. Companies are looking for the best talent all over the world, and if they find it, they’re going to move there.”

In March 2024, Education Week announced the end of the Quality Counts report after 25 years of serving as a comprehensive K-12 education scorecard. In response to new challenges and a shifting landscape, we are refocusing our efforts on research and analysis to better serve the K-12 community. For more information, please go here for the full context or learn more about the EdWeek Research Center.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Assessment Webinar
Rethinking STEM Assessment: Strategies for Administrators
School and district leaders will explore strategies to enhance STEM assessment practices across their district, within schools and classrooms.
Content provided by Project Lead The Way
Federal Webinar Keeping Up with the Trump Administration's Latest K-12 Moves: Subscriber-Exclusive Quick Hit
EdWeek subscribers, join this 30-minute webinar to find out what the latest federal policy changes mean for K-12 education.
Artificial Intelligence Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: Math & Technology: Finding the Recipe for Student Success
How should we balance AI & math instruction? Join our discussion on preparing future-ready students.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

College & Workforce Readiness How Can Educators Support Students Not Going to College?
A bipartisan panel talks about slowing trends in college-going—and what it means for schools.
3 min read
Carter Crabtree, a Daviess County High School junior, learns to stack landscaping blocks with a mini excavator at a demonstration set up by Barnard Landscaping during the Homebuilder Association of Owensboro's annual Construction Career Day on Apr. 24, 2025, in Owensboro, Ky.
Carter Crabtree, a Daviess County High School junior, learns to stack landscaping blocks with a mini excavator at a demonstration set up by Barnard Landscaping during the Homebuilder Association of Owensboro's annual Construction Career Day on Apr. 24, 2025, in Owensboro, Ky. Leaders in education discuss how career-tech education programs can support non-college-bound students, in an online webinar.
Greg Eans/The Messenger-Inquirer via AP
College & Workforce Readiness Opinion Is It Time to Ditch the Four-Year Degree?
A call for three-year degrees, micro-credentials, and closer ties between educators and employers could affect K–12 and higher education.
7 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness 3 Ways Leaders Develop College and Career Pathways Designed to Serve All Students
Two EdWeek Leaders To Learn From share how they built these systems from the ground up.
3 min read
Jennifer Norrell, superintendent of East Aurora School District 131, meets with district leaders for the School Leadership Team's weekly meeting to discuss a college readiness presentation for students at East Aurora High School in Aurora, Ill., on Dec. 4, 2024.
Jennifer Norrell, the superintendent of East Aurora School District 131, meets with district leaders for the School Leadership Team's weekly meeting to discuss a college-readiness presentation for students at East Aurora High School in Aurora, Ill., on Dec. 4, 2024. She has led efforts to expand and enrich the kinds of post-high school pathways the school offers, both in core academics and in career-technical fields.
Jamie Kelter Davis for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness High School Grads Lack Clarity on Next Steps, Survey Shows
Recent high school graduates share insights on what would have changed their trajectory in a new survey.
4 min read
Genny Willis, the Academy Teacher instructor at Smyrna High School, listens to a roundtable of students in the program in a classroom in Smyrna, Del., on Oct. 15, 2024. At Smyrna High School, there are career pathways and experimental learning opportunities to help students use practical applications towards careers after graduating high school, which can include internships, advanced classes, and specific on the job training.
Genny Willis, an instructor at Smyrna High School in Smyrna, Del., listens to a roundtable of students on Oct. 15, 2024. At Smyrna High School, there are career pathways and experimental learning opportunities to help students use practical applications towards careers after graduating high school, which can include internships, advanced classes, and specific on-the-job training.
Michelle Gustafson for Education Week