COLLEGE GRADUATES, 2003
Lobbyists, lawyers and legislators clearly believe in higher education - at least for themselves. The District of Columbia leads the nation in the proportion of college grads, with 46% of Washington adults reporting that they have at least a 4-year degree.
Nationwide, more than a fourth of Americans age 25 or older have a bachelor's degree, according to a recent report by the U.S. Census Bureau. Other highly educated states include Massachusetts, Maryland and Colorado.
At the bottom of the list were West Virginia, Arkansas and Mississippi.
Educational attainment data was collected and analyzed by the Census Bureau as part of the Annual Social and Economic Supplement to the 2003 Current Population Survey. Findings were published in Educational Attainment in the United States: 2003, released in June 2004.
Percentage college graduates for each state appear below:
| State | Population 25+
(thousands) | % bachelors degree |
| Alabama | 2,948 | 22.7 |
| Alaska | 383 | 24.0 |
| Arizona | 3,441 | 26.0 |
| Arkansas | 1,743 | 17.4 |
| California | 21,990 | 29.8 |
| Colorado | 2,894 | 36.0 |
| Connecticut | 2,232 | 33.5 |
| Delaware | 531 | 28.1 |
| District of Columbia | 404 | 46.4 |
| Florida | 11,266 | 25.8 |
| Georgia | 5,468 | 25.0 |
| Hawaii | 796 | 27.0 |
| Idaho | 795 | 22.5 |
| Illinois | 8,031 | 28.1 |
| Indiana | 3,972 | 22.2 |
| Iowa | 1,891 | 24.6 |
| Kansas | 1,693 | 31.0 |
| Kentucky | 2,673 | 21.3 |
| Louisiana | 2,763 | 22.3 |
| Maine | 882 | 23.7 |
| Maryland | 3,545 | 37.2 |
| Massachusetts | 4,415 | 37.6 |
| Michigan | 6,330 | 23.3 |
| Minnesota | 3,323 | 32.7 |
| Mississippi | 1,742 | 19.3 |
| Missouri | 3,637 | 26.6 |
| Montana | 600 | 24.9 |
| Nebraska | 1,077 | 26.8 |
| Nevada | 1,356 | 21.2 |
| New Hampshire | 865 | 34.0 |
| New Jersey | 5,740 | 33.4 |
| New Mexico | 1,154 | 23.7 |
| New York | 12,636 | 29.6 |
| North Carolina | 5,409 | 23.8 |
| North Dakota | 420 | 25.2 |
| Ohio | 7,304 | 25.0 |
| Oklahoma | 2,214 | 24.3 |
| Oregon | 2,315 | 26.4 |
| Pennsylvania | 8,277 | 24.8 |
| Rhode Island | 713 | 27.6 |
| South Carolina | 2,591 | 22.3 |
| South Dakota | 465 | 23.9 |
| Tennessee | 3,700 | 23.5 |
| Texas | 13,231 | 24.7 |
| Utah | 1,272 | 28.4 |
| Vermont | 423 | 31.3 |
| Virginia | 4,623 | 34.2 |
| Washington | 3,884 | 28.8 |
| West Virginia | 1,222 | 15.3 |
| Wisconsin | 3,585 | 24.1 |
| Wyoming | 321 | 20.7 |
Source: Annual Social and Economic Supplement to the 2003 Current Population Survey
Other rankings and top 10 lists
|
|
| MAP KEY |
|
|
