Best educated counties in the US

[Docere]

Few surprises - mostly affluent suburbs, Manhattan, DC and San Francisco, counties with major universities (i.e. Michigan - Ann Arbor, Cornell, Chapel Hill) and the DC area is well represented.

http://www.decisionsciencenews.com/2...d-counties-us/

25 counties with the highest percentage of graduate or professional degrees

1. Arlington VA 36.7%
2. Alexandria city VA 32.9%
3. Mongtomery MD 31.6%
4. Washington DC 30.6%
5. Howard MD 30.5%
6. Fairfax VA 30.2%
7. Orange NC 30%
8. New York NY (Manhattan) 28.5%
9. Tompkins NY 28.4%
10. Washtenaw MI 28.3%
11. Boulder CO 26.9%
12. Story IA 26%
13. Middlesex MA 25.7%
14. Marin CA 25.6%
15. Albermarle VA 25.4%
16. Benton OR 25.3%
17. Monroe IN 25.2%
18. Loudoun VA 24.8%
19. Riley KS 23.9%
20. Johnson IA 23.8%
21. Westchester NY 23.6%
22. Somerset NJ 23.5%
23. James City County VA 23.3%
24. Norfolk MA 23.1%
25. Santa Clara CA 22.3%

25 counties with the highest percentage with bachelor's degree or higher

1. Arlington VA 71.5%
2. Alexandria city VA 62.8%
3. Fairfax, VA 60.3%
4. Howard, MD 59.9%
5. New York, NY (Manhattan) 59.9%
6. Loudoun VA 58.7%
7. Montgomery MD 58.5%
8. Boulder CO 58%
9. Douglas CO 56.5%
10. Hamilton IN 56.3%
11. Williamson TN 56.1%
12. Marin, CA 55.2%
13. Washington, DC 55%
14. Orange NC 55%
15. San Francisco CA 54.2%
16. Somerset NJ 53.7%
17. Johnson IA 53.6%
18. Benton OR 53.5%
19. Washtenaw MI 53%
20. Morris NJ 53%
21. Johnson KS 52.8%
22. Tompkins NY 52.4%
23. Middlesex MA 52.3%
24. Delaware OH 52.2%
25. Norfolk MA 51.9%

[Obadno]

Originally Posted by Docere

Few surprises - mostly affluent suburbs, Manhattan, DC and San Francisco, counties with major universities (i.e. Michigan - Ann Arbor, Cornell, Chapel Hill) and the DC area is well represented.

http://www.decisionsciencenews.com/2...d-counties-us/

25 counties with the highest percentage of graduate or professional degrees

1. Arlington VA 36.7%
2. Alexandria city VA 32.9%
3. Mongtomery MD 31.6%
4. Washington DC 30.6%
5. Howard MD 30.5%
6. Fairfax VA 30.2%
7. Orange NC 30%
8. New York NY (Manhattan) 28.5%
9. Tompkins NY 28.4%
10. Washtenaw MI 28.3%
11. Boulder CO 26.9%
12. Story IA 26%
13. Middlesex MA 25.7%
14. Marin CA 25.6%
15. Albermarle VA 25.4%
16. Benton OR 25.3%
17. Monroe IN 25.2%
18. Loudoun VA 24.8%
19. Riley KS 23.9%
20. Johnson IA 23.8%
21. Westchester NY 23.6%
22. Somerset NJ 23.5%
23. James City County VA 23.3%
24. Norfolk MA 23.1%
25. Santa Clara CA 22.3%

25 counties with the highest percentage with bachelor's degree or higher

1. Arlington VA 71.5%
2. Alexandria city VA 62.8%
3. Fairfax, VA 60.3%
4. Howard, MD 59.9%
5. New York, NY (Manhattan) 59.9%
6. Loudoun VA 58.7%
7. Montgomery MD 58.5%
8. Boulder CO 58%
9. Douglas CO 56.5%
10. Hamilton IN 56.3%
11. Williamson TN 56.1%
12. Marin, CA 55.2%
13. Washington, DC 55%
14. Orange NC 55%
15. San Francisco CA 54.2%
16. Somerset NJ 53.7%
17. Johnson IA 53.6%
18. Benton OR 53.5%
19. Washtenaw MI 53%
20. Morris NJ 53%
21. Johnson KS 52.8%
22. Tompkins NY 52.4%
23. Middlesex MA 52.3%
24. Delaware OH 52.2%
25. Norfolk MA 51.9%

This will be a great example of why County is sometimes a terrible demarcation for measurment.

Western states have MASSIVE counties, a legacy from when there was very low populaiton, so its very hard for large western counties to ever be represented in a listing like this.

[Crawford]

Originally Posted by Obadno

This will be a great example of why County is sometimes a terrible demarcation for measurment.

Western states have MASSIVE counties, a legacy from when there was very low populaiton, so its very hard for large western counties to ever be represented in a listing like this.

That would be true for any comparable ranking of any geography.

And it doesn't make any sense. There are plenty of populous counties on the list, including those in the West.

[pj3000]

I think the main story here is that the DC area has the first 6 of the top 10 (7 of top 25) counties for grad/prof degrees

[mhays]

Small counties obviously can isolate the favored quarter more easily.

My county includes the core city, the favored suburban third, the poorer suburban third, and maybe 1,200 square miles of complete wilderness. It'll never have per capita superlatives.

[ThePhun1]

Originally Posted by pj3000

I think the main story here is that the DC area has the first 6 of the top 10 (7 of top 25) counties for grad/prof degrees

So what you're saying is you have to be highly educated to live near the nation's capital? Or near New York for that matter?

[ThePhun1]

Originally Posted by mhays

Small counties obviously can isolate the favored quarter more easily.

My county includes the core city, the favored suburban third, the poorer suburban third, and maybe 1,200 square miles of complete wilderness. It'll never have per capita superlatives.

Some of those aren't even counties, in practice anyways, such as San Francisco, Manhattan and certainly Alexandria.

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by ThePhun1

So what you're saying is you have to be highly educated to live near the nation's capital? Or near New York for that matter?

I think what the high number of professional degrees in and near DC says is just that (a) there are a ton of lawyers in government, lobbying government, defending those in government and litigating what government does, and (b) the government also hires a lot of those with masters, MD and PhD degrees (as well as lawyers) in vast institutions like NIH, assorted defense research labs and so on. In New York there may be a lot of lawyers practicing corporate law and there are also at least 4 academic medical campuses (that I can think of right now).

[dimondpark]

I think I'll put this here...

data for 1-year estimates is only released for cities with 65,000+ population.

30%+ of Adults Ages 18-24 Have Earned at least a Bachelor Degree, 2016
Somerville, MA 54.0%
Plymouth, MN 52.2%
Arlington, VA 49.0%
Milpitas, CA 47.2%
Santa Monica, CA 44.0%
Silver Spring, MD 41.1%
Palo Alto, CA 39.0%
San Francisco, CA 36.9%
Bellevue, WA 33.9%
Quincy, MA 33.2%
Sugar Land, TX 33.2%
Seattle, WA 33.1%
Walnut Creek, CA 32.7%
Alameda, CA 31.5%
Pleasanton, CA 31.1%
Carmel, IN 31.0%
Troy, MI 30.9%
Newport Beach, CA 30.6%
Overland Park, KS 30.5%
Mount Pleasant, SC 30.0%
Mountain View, CA 30.0%

Not a very large group.

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by ThePhun1

Some of those aren't even counties, in practice anyways, such as San Francisco, Manhattan and certainly Alexandria.

San Francisco doesn't show up too well in the graduate degree category because you don't need an advanced degree or any degree to code and even the majority of engineers get their first jobs with just a bachellor's degree. San Francisco does have one huge academic medical institution--UCSF--which I believe is the city's largest employer, and also lots of law firms doing work for tech companies and tech-related financial companies but that evidently isn't enough to push it into the top ranks of professional degrees.

Moving on . . . I love how UNC (U. of North Carolina) dominates the statistics of Orange County, NC.

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by dimondpark

30%+ of Adults Ages 18-24 Have Earned at least a Bachelor Degree, 2016

Silver Spring, MD 41.1%
Palo Alto, CA 39.0%
San Francisco, CA 36.9%

Guess I've come down in the world: Raised in Silver Spring, now living in SF.

[dimondpark]

Originally Posted by Pedestrian

San Francisco doesn't show up too well in the graduate degree category because you don't need an advanced degree or any degree to code and even the majority of engineers get their first jobs with just a bachellor's degree. San Francisco does have one huge academic medical institution--UCSF--which I believe is the city's largest employer, and also lots of law firms doing work for tech companies and tech-related financial companies but that evidently isn't enough to push it into the top ranks of professional degrees.

Moving on . . . I love how UNC (U. of North Carolina) dominates the statistics of Orange County, NC.

SF does just fine at the Metro level

Metro Areas(MSA) by the percentage of adults age 25+ with at least a Bachelor Degree
Washington 50.2%
San Jose 50.1%
San Francisco 48.5%
Raleigh 47.2%
Boston 46.9%
Austin 42.8%
Denver 42.5%
Seattle 42.0%
Minneapolis 40.5%
Baltimore 39.5%
New York 39.0%
Portland 38.9%
Atlanta 37.7%
San Diego 37.4%
Chicago 37.2%
Kansas City 36.7%
Philadelphia 36.7%
Columbus 36.0%
Milwaukee 34.9%
Pittsburgh 34.6%
Charlotte 34.4%
Nashville 34.2%
St Louis 34.1%
Dallas 33.9%
Indianapolis 33.8%
Los Angeles 33.5%
Cincinnati 33.1%
Salt Lake City 33.0%
Sacramento 32.6%
Houston 32.0%
Virginia Beach 31.4%
Phoenix 30.8%
Jacksonville 30.7%
Miami 30.5%
Detroit 30.4%
Cleveland 30.3%
New Orleans 29.4%
San Antonio 27.8%
Memphis 27.5%
Las Vegas 23.3%
Riverside 21.0%

Metro Areas(MSA) by the percentage of adults age 25+ with a Graduate Degree
Washington 25.0%
San Jose 22.4%
Boston 21.1%
San Francisco 19.8%
Raleigh 16.9%
New York 16.3%
Seattle 15.9%
Denver 15.6%
Austin 15 0%
Baltimore 15.0%
Chicago 14.8%
Portland 14.8%
Philadelphia 14.7%
Atlanta 14.2%
San Diego 14.0%
Minneapolis 13.9%
St Louis 13.7%
Kansas City 13.2%
Pittsburgh 13.2%
Columbus 12.7%
Milwaukee 12.6%
Cincinnati 12.4%
Salt Lake City 12.2%
Cleveland 12.0%
Detroit 12.0%
Indianapolis 12.0%
Nashville 12.0%
Sacramento 11.9%
Virginia Beach 11.8%
Los Angeles 11.7%
Dallas 11.6%
Houston 11.6%
Miami 11.3%
Charlotte 11.1%
Phoenix 11.1%
New Orleans 10.7%
Memphis 10.2%
Jacksonville 10.0%
San Antonio 9.9%
Las Vegas 7.6%
Riverside 7.5%

[dimondpark]

Originally Posted by Pedestrian

Guess I've come down in the world: Raised in Silver Spring, now living in SF.

Well not so fast, this age group is substantially wealthier in SF

Median HH Income, Under Age 25:
San Francisco, CA $69,023
Silver Spring, MD $21,955

[Sun Belt]

Originally Posted by dimondpark

I think I'll put this here...

data for 1-year estimates is only released for cities with 65,000+ population.

30%+ of Adults Ages 18-24 Have Earned at least a Bachelor Degree, 2016
Somerville, MA 54.0%
Plymouth, MN 52.2%
Arlington, VA 49.0%
Milpitas, CA 47.2%
Santa Monica, CA 44.0%
Silver Spring, MD 41.1%
Palo Alto, CA 39.0%
San Francisco, CA 36.9%
Bellevue, WA 33.9%
Quincy, MA 33.2%
Sugar Land, TX 33.2%
Seattle, WA 33.1%
Walnut Creek, CA 32.7%
Alameda, CA 31.5%
Pleasanton, CA 31.1%
Carmel, IN 31.0%
Troy, MI 30.9%
Newport Beach, CA 30.6%
Overland Park, KS 30.5%
Mount Pleasant, SC 30.0%
Mountain View, CA 30.0%

Not a very large group.

I was looking this up for Santa Monica last night. Is this just bachelors degree holders? The source I found was close to 64% for a bachelors and higher.

E] it's actually higher on the census.gov site at 67% of 25 or older.
https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fa...rnia/PST045217

E2] I just realized that your information is the 18-24 year olds

[Sun Belt]

The Triangle - Raleigh Durham Chapel Hill - right up there with San Francisco thanks to the great schools in the area.

[dimondpark]

Originally Posted by Sun Belt

The Triangle - Raleigh Durham Chapel Hill - right up there with San Francisco thanks to the great schools in the area.

Yes very impressive!

[dave8721]

Originally Posted by dimondpark

I think I'll put this here...

data for 1-year estimates is only released for cities with 65,000+ population.

30%+ of Adults Ages 18-24 Have Earned at least a Bachelor Degree, 2016
Somerville, MA 54.0%
Plymouth, MN 52.2%
Arlington, VA 49.0%
Milpitas, CA 47.2%
Santa Monica, CA 44.0%
Silver Spring, MD 41.1%
Palo Alto, CA 39.0%
San Francisco, CA 36.9%
Bellevue, WA 33.9%
Quincy, MA 33.2%
Sugar Land, TX 33.2%
Seattle, WA 33.1%
Walnut Creek, CA 32.7%
Alameda, CA 31.5%
Pleasanton, CA 31.1%
Carmel, IN 31.0%
Troy, MI 30.9%
Newport Beach, CA 30.6%
Overland Park, KS 30.5%
Mount Pleasant, SC 30.0%
Mountain View, CA 30.0%

Not a very large group.

I don't think you will find many 18 year olds anywhere with a degree already

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by ThePhun1

So what you're saying is you have to be highly educated to live near the nation's capital? Or near New York for that matter?

Well, I wasn't saying that. You certainly don't have to be. Just that it shows a rather remarkable (though not unexpected) concentration of highly-educated people in the DC area... I mean, the first 6 most educated counties in the entire nation concentrated in one metro area... that's certainly a demographic point of interest.

New York really isn't that well represented in this classification.

Originally Posted by ThePhun1

Some of those aren't even counties, in practice anyways, such as San Francisco, Manhattan and certainly Alexandria.

Yeah, but that's really just semantics. For a listing like this, it would be faulty to leave those places out because of those cities are organized (i.e., San Francisco and Manhattan coexistences with San Francisco County and New York County, and Alexandria's independent classification, like many VA cities).

US states obviously don't have a "one-size-fits-all" incorporation/governance structure for municipalities. The census bureau uses counties as the unit of measure and treats independent cities, county equivalents, city/county consolidations as counties for demographic purposes.

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by dave8721

I don't think you will find many 18 year olds anywhere with a degree already

They're all SSP forumers.

[10023]

Originally Posted by Obadno

This will be a great example of why County is sometimes a terrible demarcation for measurment.

Western states have MASSIVE counties, a legacy from when there was very low populaiton, so its very hard for large western counties to ever be represented in a listing like this.

It would be more interesting to look at a list of counties with at least 500K people, or something like that.