USA Drops Again In International Rankings Of College Completion

A new report from the Center for Postsecondary and Economic Success finds that as other countries have increased their postsecondary attainment, the United States has fallen to 15th place among 34 Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member countries in the percentage of 25- to 34-year-olds with an Associate’s level college degree or higher. Today, over half of young adults in leading OECD countries — Canada, South Korea, and Japan — have college degrees, compared to 41 percent in the United States. At current rates of attainment, the United States will fall short of its goals by tens of millions of postsecondary credentials over the next couple of decades. Despite this, federal policymakers continue to trim grants awarded to students. The proportion of state budgets devoted to postsecondary education has fallen by more than 13 percent since 1990. A 60-percent credential attainment would produce significant economic returns to individuals, states, and the nation by 2025. Average annual per-capita income would increase by approximately $1,400 by 2025. Federal revenue of $67 billion in 2025 would be about six times higher than the estimated postsecondary costs of $9.8 billion, and state revenue of $64 billion would be triple the estimated state postsecondary costs of $21 billion.
Read more: http://www.clasp.org/postsecondary/pages?type=postsecondary_and_economic_success&id=0025

Source:PEN Newsblat