Today’s newly arrived immigrants are the best-educated ever
Four-in-ten immigrants arriving in the U.S. in the past five years had completed at least a bachelor’s degree. In 1970, only 20% of newly arrived immigrants were similarly educated.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Four-in-ten immigrants arriving in the U.S. in the past five years had completed at least a bachelor’s degree. In 1970, only 20% of newly arrived immigrants were similarly educated.
Attention, parents of third graders: If demographic patterns hold, your children could be in the largest U.S. college freshman class ever.
Despite improvements in the labor market, Millennials today are less likely to be living independently of their families and establishing their own households than they were in the depths of the Great Recession.
The gap between America’s upper-income and middle-income families has reached its highest level on record. In 2013, the median wealth of the nation’s upper-income families ($639,400) was nearly seven times the median wealth of middle-income families ($96,500).
In 2012, a record 69% of the nation’s new college graduates had taken out student loans to finance their education. Graduates from more affluent families are much more likely to borrow today than 20 years ago.
Just 7% of the nation’s 18-to-24 year olds had dropped out of high school in 2013, continuing a steady decline in the nation’s dropout rate since 2000, when 12% of youth were dropouts.
The nation’s aggregate wealth continues to show signs of recovery, but that wealth recovery has been concentrated on the wealthiest Americans. Meanwhile, the aggregate net worth for America’s economic middle is actually declining.
The number of Americans living in multi-generational households, which spiked during the Great Recession, has risen to a record 57 million in 2012, including about one-in-four young adults ages 25-34.
A record 37% of young households had outstanding student loans in 2010 and a median student debt of $13,000.
Student debt burdens are weighing on the economic fortunes of today’s young adults. Among the college-educated, those with outstanding student debt are lagging far behind those who are debt free in terms of household wealth.