5 ms·

Can anyone find a source for the unemployment rate of high school graduates? 22.9% is astoundingly high, if true. I couldn't find a source (beyond tons of arti

Can anyone find a source for the unemployment rate of high school graduates? 22.9% is astoundingly high, if true. I couldn't find a source (beyond tons of articles echoing the study), and found several contrarian sources, including http://www.wiredacademic.com/2012/01/unemployment-data-most-bleak-for-high-school-and-college-drop-outs/ http://www.wiredacademic.com/2012/01/unemployment-data-most-...

tsantero 15y ago
> Can anyone find a source for the unemployment rate of high school graduates? 22.9% is astoundingly high, if true. The Bureau of Labor Statistics is always a great place to look. Employment status of the civilian population 25 years and over by educational attainment: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t04.htm http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t04.htm According to this (last updated Dec 02, 2011) the not-seasonally adjusted aggregate unemployment for anyone who holds a HS diploma (regardless of higher level education) is 20%. Edit: I didn't mean to cause any confusion by aggregating the "non-hs-dropout" stats, so let me make it clearer: Level of Education : Unemployment Rate High School Dropout: 12.7% High School Diploma: 8.4% Some College/AA Deg: 7.4% Bachelors or Higher: 4.2%
- cmurphycode 15y ago
  I must be reading it wrong, because I see 8.4% unadjusted for high school graduates in Nov 2011. How are you calculating aggregate regardless of higher level education? I don't understand how you can just add the high school, some college, and bachelors to get 20%.
  - tsantero 15y ago
    > I don't understand how you can just add the high school, some college, and bachelors to get 20%. That is exactly what I did. In my original response, I wrote aggregate unemployment for anyone who holds a HS diploma (regardless of higher level education) is 20%. I wasn't trying to be misleading, I just thought it was interesting to see that the aggregate for all non-high school dropouts. Anyway, after looking at the article again, the author claims the unemployment stats come from 2009-2010 US Census and a study done at the Georgetown Center on Education and Workforce, broken down by age group. The BLS scope is obviously much larger and current.
    - dangrossman 15y ago
      Why would you add together averages? The aggregate unemployment rate for those groups together is 7.4%, not 20%.
- cdh 15y ago
  I don't know where you are seeing that. According to the data you linked to, the highest unadjusted unemployment rate in November 2011 (in any category) is 12.7% for "Less than a high school diploma".
- cmdrreiki 15y ago
  When you are browsing the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it is important to look at the several metrics they measure for unemployment. BLS reports U-3 as "The Unemployment Rate", but many people feel that U-6 is a better measure of unemployment.

tsantero 15y ago

> Can anyone find a source for the unemployment rate of high school graduates? 22.9% is astoundingly high, if true. The Bureau of Labor Statistics is always a great place to look. Employment status of the civilian population 25 years and over by educational attainment: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t04.htm http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t04.htm According to this (last updated Dec 02, 2011) the not-seasonally adjusted aggregate unemployment for anyone who holds a HS diploma (regardless of higher level education) is 20%. Edit: I didn't mean to cause any confusion by aggregating the "non-hs-dropout" stats, so let me make it clearer: Level of Education : Unemployment Rate High School Dropout: 12.7% High School Diploma: 8.4% Some College/AA Deg: 7.4% Bachelors or Higher: 4.2%

cmurphycode 15y ago
I must be reading it wrong, because I see 8.4% unadjusted for high school graduates in Nov 2011. How are you calculating aggregate regardless of higher level education? I don't understand how you can just add the high school, some college, and bachelors to get 20%.
- tsantero 15y ago
  > I don't understand how you can just add the high school, some college, and bachelors to get 20%. That is exactly what I did. In my original response, I wrote aggregate unemployment for anyone who holds a HS diploma (regardless of higher level education) is 20%. I wasn't trying to be misleading, I just thought it was interesting to see that the aggregate for all non-high school dropouts. Anyway, after looking at the article again, the author claims the unemployment stats come from 2009-2010 US Census and a study done at the Georgetown Center on Education and Workforce, broken down by age group. The BLS scope is obviously much larger and current.
  - dangrossman 15y ago
    Why would you add together averages? The aggregate unemployment rate for those groups together is 7.4%, not 20%.
cdh 15y ago
I don't know where you are seeing that. According to the data you linked to, the highest unadjusted unemployment rate in November 2011 (in any category) is 12.7% for "Less than a high school diploma".
cmdrreiki 15y ago
When you are browsing the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it is important to look at the several metrics they measure for unemployment. BLS reports U-3 as "The Unemployment Rate", but many people feel that U-6 is a better measure of unemployment.