Page 89 - Crisis in Higher Education

Understanding the Root Causes • 63

With a PhD, the unemployment rate was only 2.5% and the weekly earn-
ings were more than triple at $1,551. For each step up the education lad-
der, the unemployment rate is lower and wages higher with only one
1
small exception. See Table 4.1 for the full data.
The path to success in the United States seems to require either knowl-
edge beyond high school or skills such as welding or electrical. If the
United States is to educate a larger portion of its population, it must find
ways to reduce the cost and improve the outcomes of higher education.
This chapter begins the process as it describes the root causes of the
problems and discusses the links between the causes and the problems.
The next chapter and the balance of the book describe a comprehensive
and integrated solution to address the causes, thereby providing millen-
nials and generations to come a higher education system with lower costs,
higher quality, better access, higher graduation rates, on-time completion,
and better job opportunities.

4.1 SUMMARIZING THE UNDERLYING
PROBLEMS WITH HIGHER EDUCATION

When people discuss the problems with higher education, they normally
focus on its high cost, which is a significant problem. However, a focus on
cost may cause people to miss the fact that high cost contributes to other

TABLE 4.1
Unemployment Rate and Median Weekly Earning in 2011
Unemployment Median Weekly
Education Rate 2011 Earnings in 2011
PhD 2.5% $1,551
Professional degree 2.4% $1,665
Master’s degree 3.6% $1,263
Bachelor’s degree 4.9% $1,053
Associate degree 6.8% $768
Some college, no degree 8.7% $719
High school diploma 9.4% $638
Less than high school diploma 14.1% $451
Source: United States Department of the Treasury and Department of Education, The
Economics of Higher Education, 2012. https://www.treasury.gov/connect/blog/
Documents/20121212_Economics%20of%20Higher%20Ed_ vFINAL.pdf