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Education Levels in N.D. Up Slightly

In 2009, North Dakota had the 28th highest proportion in the nation of people 25 and older who completed a bachelor’s degree.

Approximately one in four North Dakotans ages 25 and older completed a bachelor’s degree in 2009 (latest data available), which is up from 22 percent in 2000 and 18 percent in 1990. Nationally, 28 percent of adults completed a bachelor’s degree in 2009.

This month’s “Population Bulletin,” a monthly publication from the North Dakota State Data Center at North Dakota State University, focuses on the educational attainment of adults ages 25 and older as reported in the Census Bureau’s 2005 through 2009 American Community Survey.

North Dakota had the 28th highest proportion in the nation of people 25 and older who completed a bachelor’s degree in 2009. West Virginia ranked lowest with 17 percent. Four states (Massachusetts, Colorado, Maryland and Connecticut), along with the District of Columbia, had at least 35 percent of people 25 and older who completed a bachelor’s degree.

Approximately 11 percent of North Dakotans ages 25 and older had less than a high school diploma in 2009, which is down from 16 percent a decade earlier. Only 10 states had a lower proportion of uneducated adults.

“This significant decline in North Dakota’s proportion of adults with less than a high school degree, in part, reflects the diminishing proportion of the state’s population who were born prior to the Great Depression,” says Richard Rathge, State Data Center director. “This was a time when the demand for education was less pressing.”

The proportion of North Dakotans ages 25 and older who had completed some college or an associate degree changed little during the past decade (34 percent in 2000 to 35 percent in 2009).

North Dakotans who completed an advanced degree (master’s, professional or doctorate) accounted for 7 percent of all adults 25 and older in 2009, compared with 6 percent in 2000.


NDSU Agriculture Communication – Nov. 2, 2011

Source:Richard Rathge, (701) 231-8621, richard.rathge@ndsu.edu
Editor:Rich Mattern, (701) 231-6136, richard.mattern@ndsu.edu

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