Do College Graduates Make More Money Than High School Graduates?

Do college graduates make more money? What is the average salary with high school diploma credentials, and how much more do college graduates make? How much does a high school graduate earn? Take a look at the table below to see college degree vs no college degree statistics from the BLS for 2017, 2018, and 2019. This table reflects average weekly earnings for full-time wage and salary workers who are 25 years old or older, and these numbers are proportional to average annual earnings for college graduates and non graduates. You will see that the weekly earnings for degree holders vary according to the degrees they hold, and it should be noted that having some college credits even without a degree can put more money in an individual's pocket.

Source: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

How much more do graduates earn with a degree? Even though it is generally true that having a college degree will help you earn more money than someone with a high school diploma, some occupations requiring a degree may pay the same or less than those requiring a high school diploma. There is no hard and fast rule that says every occupation requiring a degree will be high paying. Sometimes, salaries are determined more by the field than the job within that field. For example, in many cases, positions requiring bachelor's or master's degrees in social services or education pay less than their counterparts in business or finance. See the breakdown of some specific occupations and salaries below.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Occupations that require less than an associate degree tend to fall in one of three categories: no educational credential, high school diploma, or postsecondary non-degree award or certificate. In 2019 the BLS listed 103 occupations that required no educational credential. However, many of these positions do require some experience in the field in order to increase earnings. There were over 300 occupations listed in the BLS Occupation Finder that required a high school diploma or equivalent or some college with no degree. Finally, the BLS reported over 50 occupations that required post-secondary certificates in 2019. As seen from the table above, many careers for those with less than an associate degree pay between $20,000-$30,000.

The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook allows you to filter results according to the education level required for entry-level positions. There were 47 occupations in 2019 requiring an associate degree for entry-level positions, 169 occupations requiring a bachelor's degree, and 37 occupations requiring a master's degree. Salaries can range from $50,000 to over $100,000 for those with a college degree.

The table below displays unemployment rates and median usual weekly earnings for people who have achieved education levels ranging from less than a high school diploma to a doctoral degree based on 2019 data from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. Overall, higher levels of education correlate with lower unemployment rates and higher median usual weekly earnings. Individuals with a doctoral degree have the lowest rate of unemployment (1.1%), while people with less than a high school diploma have the highest unemployment rate (5.4%). The table also shows information that we can use to infer the salary according to education; that is, the average salary without college degree, average salary without high school diploma, the average non graduate salary, and high school diploma salary. As you can see, graduates earn more than non-graduates, and the average salary of a college graduate versus a high school graduate is higher.

Overall, the largest jump in unemployment is between the high school diploma category and the less than high school diploma category. However, every additional level of education continues to reduce the unemployment rate and increase the median weekly earnings.

The data presented in this article show that college graduates earn significantly more money than people without a college degree, on average. In addition to the diploma vs degree salary, people with higher education levels also have lower unemployment rates. Nevertheless, there are other considerations to take into account when determining between college vs no college, or college degree vs no degree. First, the average cases do not represent every person with or without a college degree, and there are some cases where people without college degrees earn more than people with degrees. Additionally, the cost of a college degree can pose a significant obstacle that must be confronted before you gain the benefits of a degree. For instance, many people must take out large amounts of student loans, which take many years to pay off after graduation. Loan payments are an additional expense that may lower the net income of a person with a college degree compared to someone with a high school diploma who does not have student loan debt.