Only about 30 percent of Americans who are older than age 25 have a bachelor's degree, although more than half have at least some college training. The percentage of American adults who hold a bachelor's degree is the highest it has ever been, having increased by more than four times since the 1950s. More Americans also have bachelor's degrees than any other type of degree. About 7.5 percent of Americans hold a master's degree and only about three percent have a doctorate. More than 85 percent of American adults graduated from high school.
More facts about higher education in the U.S.:
- Asian-Americans are more likely than Americans of any other ethnicity to have a bachelor's degree, with about half of Asian-Americans holding a bachelor's degree, compared with about 30 percent of non-Hispanic whites, about 17 percent of non-Hispanic blacks and about 11 percent of Hispanics or Latinos.
- Women have earned more of every type of degree except for doctorates than men, with about 60 percent of associate's, bachelor's and master's degrees going to women and about 48 percent of doctorates going to women.
- Less than 60 percent of American students entering a four-year college are likely to have a degree six years later.