SUMMER 2002 | Volume 77, Number 2
Print
this article
Educational Attainment and Our Neighboring States
Between the 1990 and 2000 censuses, Indiana and its neighboring states showed similar declines among adults with less than a high school education and increases in those with at least a high school diploma or some college (see Table 1).
Table 1
Ten Year Changes in Educational Attainment—Indiana and Its Neighbors
| Percent Change
|
U.S. |
IN |
IL |
KY |
MI |
OH |
| Less than 9th grade |
-16.6 |
-30.6 |
-20.4 |
-30.1 |
-34.0 |
-39.3 |
| 9th to 12th, no diploma |
-3.9 |
-11.5 |
-10.4 |
-2.0 |
-15.4 |
-18.2 |
| High school graduate (includes equivalency) |
9.5 |
8.6 |
1.1 |
19.9 |
6.5 |
6.3 |
| Some college, no degree |
28.8 |
32.9 |
21.6 |
38.4 |
25.6 |
24.8 |
| Associate degree |
17.6 |
22.1 |
14.5 |
36.9 |
14.1 |
19.1 |
| Bachelor's degree |
35.9 |
47.9 |
33.1 |
43.2 |
37.7 |
32.4 |
| Graduate or professional degree |
40.7 |
26.5 |
39.6 |
41.6 |
37.7 |
34.3 |
| Total Population |
14.7 |
11.6 |
9.3 |
13.4 |
9.8 |
7.0 |
Ohio experienced the most significant decline in adults with less than a ninth grade education, followed by Michigan, Indiana, and Kentucky. Between 1990 and 2000, Kentucky experienced the smallest decline in adults who went to high school but did not receive a diploma. During that same ten-year span, Indiana experienced the largest percentage increase in adults with a bachelor's degree—47.9 percent— among its neighbors and compared to the U.S. (see Figure 1).
Figure 1
Percent Change in Adults with a Bachelor's Degree, 1990-2000
At the same time, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio have the lowest proportion of adults with less than a ninth grade education when compared to the United States (7.5 percent) and Kentucky (12 percent) (see Table 2).
Table 2
Type of Educational Attainment—Indiana and Its Neighbors
| Percent Distribution 2000 |
U.S. |
IN |
IL |
KY |
MI |
OH |
| Less than 9th grade | 7.55 |
5.31 |
7.50 |
11.69 |
4.66 |
4.48 |
| 9th to 12th, no diploma | 12.05 |
12.56 |
11.07 |
14.20 |
11.93 |
12.55 |
| High school graduate (includes equivalency) | 28.63 |
37.19 |
27.74 |
33.57 |
31.34 |
36.09 |
| Some college, no degree | 21.05 |
19.75 |
21.58 |
18.52 |
23.33 |
19.86 |
| Associate degree | 6.32 |
5.79 |
6.05 |
4.89 |
6.98 |
5.93 |
| Bachelor's degree | 15.54 |
12.21 |
16.52 |
10.26 |
13.70 |
13.71 |
| Graduate or professional degree | 8.86 |
7.20 |
9.54 |
6.88 |
8.07 |
7.38 |
| Total Population Age 25 and older |
100.00 |
100.00 |
100.00 |
100.00 |
100.00 |
100.00 |
The
Indiana Business Review is a publication of the