Look for some of the most educated people in the country in our nation’s capital. The District of Columbia ranks No. 1 with the highest percent of people (26.7 percent) ages 25 and over who have completed an advanced degree beyond a B.A. That’s not surprising, given the concentration of government agencies and think tanks that rely on workers with more diplomas than most to fill their ranks.
This data comes from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2008 American Community Survey (ACS), which is based on data collected in 2008.
The share for D.C. has steadily risen since 2005 (25.2 percent). Next year, it will be interesting to check whether the influx of new blood in 2009 from the arrival of the Obama administration, which contains more graduate degrees than earlier administrations, pushes that even higher.
Based on the 2008 data, Massachusetts ranks No. 2 with 16.4 percent and Maryland is No. 3 with 15.4 percent. Rounding out the top five are Connecticut at 15.2 percent and New York tied with Virginia at 13.8 percent.
The American Community Survey (ACS) collects data every year on topics that include education, transportation, housing and ancestry. The information gleaned affects how more than $400 billion in federal and state funds get doled out each year. This ongoing survey of 3 million households a year eliminated the need for a separate long form census in 2010.
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