Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

U.S. Census Bureau to Stop Measuring the Value of College Majors

  • 12/15/14

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Census Bureau is proposing eliminating the collection of data on the value of college majors from its annual American Community Survey (ACS). At a time when seven out of 10 high school graduates enroll in college, that move would eliminate the only information that students, parents and educators can rely on to understand the economic benefits of individual college majors, according to researchers at the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.

All college degrees are valuable but some majors are much more valuable than others. The difference between the highest paying and lowest paying major is $90,000 in annual salary, a difference that accumulates to more than $4 million over a career according to the Center’s previous research.

“At a time when what you take in college determines what you make, the fact that they’re proposing this is difficult to understand,” says Anthony P. Carnevale, the Center’s director. “This move would be a huge step backward in nationwide efforts to help students make informed choices about what to study in college.”

The ACS’s coverage on college majors has served to inform students, colleges, media and the general public not only on earnings of a particular college major but also on differences in employment rates by major nationwide and in individual states.

“The demand for this kind of information is enormous,” says Jeff Strohl, the Center’s research director. “Every year, college students and their families are making decisions about what to study that will affect them for the rest of their lives.”

The ACS is an annual nationwide survey of 3 million households. Since its launch in 2005, the survey has helped researchers produce findings on college majors that are targeted toward students, career counselors, high schools, colleges, policymakers and community leaders.

The Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce is an independent, nonprofit research and policy institute that studies the link between individual goals, education and training curricula, and career pathways. The Center is affiliated with the Georgetown McCourt School of Public Policy. For more information, visit: http://cew.georgetown.edu.

Featured

  • A digital silhouette works at a computer, immersed in a glowing, interconnected world

    How Will AI Transform Learning Space Design?

    For years, higher education has designed learning spaces around technology as a tool for display, capture, collaboration, and connectivity. AI changes that equation.

  • Deferred Maintenance Issues Growing at Universities, Gordian Reports

    U.S. colleges and universities are falling increasingly behind on facilities maintenance and repair, according to Gordian’s 13th annual State of Facilities in Higher Education report. The deferred capital renewal burden has reached $156 per gross square foot, an 8% increase over the previous year.

  • New City School

    Turning Crisis into Opportunity: Transforming New City School

    When New City School in St. Louis suffered catastrophic flood damage in July 2022, the event could have marked a serious setback for the 100-year-old institution. Instead, it became a forward-looking opportunity.

  • UT System Approves First Funds for New Campus

    The University of Texas System Board of Regents recently approved funds to build the first facility of a new campus in far west Fort Worth, Texas, according to university news. UTA West will serve as a branch of the University of Texas at Arlington and is scheduled to open in fall 2028.