High School Sophomores 10 Years Later

To determine how today's young adults are faring, the National Center for Education Statistics has been tracking a representative sample of 2002 high school sophomores over the past decade. The status of these young adults in 2012, at age 26, reveals how hard it has been to grow up during the Great Recession.

More than 80 percent of the high school sophomores of 2002 completed high school and entered a post-secondary education program. A decade later, 33 percent had a bachelor's degree, 32 percent had some college but no degree, and 19 percent had a certificate or associate's degree. Sixty percent of those who entered a post-secondary education program borrowed money to pay for school.

Among those with a bachelor's degree, 78 percent were employed full-time in 2012 but only 33 percent earned $40,000 or more. One in five had lost a job since January 2006. Fully 46 percent had debts of $30,000 or more. The 52 percent majority were single—neither married nor living with a partner. About one in five lived with their parents, and most lived within 100 miles of their 2002 residence. These are the success stories.

Among the young adults with some college but no degree, a smaller 64 percent had a full-time job in 2012 and only 14 percent earned $40,000 or more. More than 40 percent had lost a job since January 2006. Twenty-two percent had debts of $30,000 or more, despite having no diploma to show for it. More than one in four lived with their parents and most lived within 10 miles of their 2002 residence.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics, Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002): A First Look at High School Sophomores 10 Years Later