The Value of an Education

Employment status april 2010 2011

Here’s an interesting chart from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showing the employment status for persons 25 and older by educational attainment. Looking closely at the chart there are 2 things that stand out.

1. People with a Bachelors Degree or higher were less likely to be unemployed between April 2010 and April 2011, a period when unemployment over the last 10 years was at it’s highest.

2. The amount of people who never completed high school and were unemployed barely changed from one month to the next.

The major problems I notice immediately with the chart are with the sampling. Where was the poll conducted? How was it conducted? How did they attain the sampling?

These are 3 major factors that can contribute to the results swaying one way or another. Obviously a poll conducted in suburban Iowa would have completely different results than one taken in Silicon Valley and likewise a poll taken in New York would have vastly different results than one from rural California where the economy is still largely agrarian based.

Nonetheless, it is interesting and shows how valuable an education can be at not only finding a job but keeping that job once you’ve found it.

You can view the chart up close and personal to make your own conclusions here.