A new report out of Georgetown University is casting light on the importance of a college degree. Researchers there delved into data related to “good jobs” created since economic recovery began in America in 2010 and found almost all of them have gone to those with a degree.
Georgetown describes “good jobs” as those that offer median annual earnings of more than $42,700 in 2013 dollars. That adds up to about $53,000 a year for full-time, year-round workers.
An estimated 2.9 million of these so-called good jobs were created in the period between 2010 and 2014. A whopping 2.8 million, or 97%, of the new jobs went to applicants with at least a bachelor’s degree, Georgetown’s Center on Education and the Workforce found.
The numbers, researchers pointed out, make it clear that postsecondary education is critical for gaining access to higher paying jobs.
Georgetown’s report also looked into the types of jobs created during the economic recovery period and found that more have actually been in that “good job” category.
Of the 6.6 million jobs added, 2.9 million are “good ones.” About 1.9 million middle-wage jobs, paying $25,800 to $42,700, have also been added.
An estimated 1.8 low-wage positions, paying less than $25,800, were created in the same time period.
While researchers found that positions in the good and low wage categories have fully rebounded from pre-recession levels, those in the middle category are struggling to bounce back.
An estimated 900,000 new jobs in the middle category are still needed to reach pre-recession employment levels.
As Georgetown researchers looked at just who was managing to land high-paying jobs in the new economy, Edmunds.com took a look at the tastes driving America’s up-and-coming generation.
The auto pricing website found in its study that millennials, those ages 18 to 34, have a taste for the finer things in life and a habit of upgrading regularly to ensure they enjoy the best.
Millennials are currently the country’s second largest car buying group, just behind their baby boomer parents. The younger generation is expected to buy or lease nearly 2 million vehicles in 2015 alone.
Millennials, Edmunds found, are avid lovers of luxury automobiles. These car “buyers,” however, are opting for leases so they can more readily afford their luxury rides.
Should millennials want to transform those leases into luxury car purchases, they’re likely to find Georgetown’s research important to them. Jobs that deliver higher incomes simply demand college degrees as evidenced by Georgetown’s study.
“Job seekers with bachelor’s degrees or higher have the best odds of securing good jobs,” Georgetown’s report pointed out.
