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December 7, 2006 North Dakota Shows Growing Proportion of Educated Poor Since 1980, the percentage of North Dakotans who have college degrees has grown. However, this growth has been paralleled by growth in the proportion of North Dakotans living in poverty who are college educated. This month's "Population Bulletin," a monthly publication from the North Dakota State Data Center at North Dakota State University, focuses on the educational attainment levels of people ages 25 to 64 living in poverty in North Dakota. Overall, educational attainment levels have risen during the past few decades in North Dakota. Among people ages 25 to 64, who make up the bulk of the labor force, the percentage having a bachelor's degree or higher form of education was 18.2 percent in 1980, 21.2 percent in 1990 and 25.7 percent in 2000. Of these college educated residents, only 3.5 percent lived in poverty in 2000 compared with 10.1 percent of all people ages 25 to 64. “Unfortunately, more education does not protect one from poverty completely,” says Richard Rathge, State Data Center director. A closer look at North Dakotans ages 25 to 64 who are living in poverty reveals a growing proportion having college degrees. The percentage of North Dakotans ages 25 to 64 living in poverty who are college educated was 9.1 percent in 1980, 9.6 percent in 1990 and reached 10.8 percent by 2000. "This is a troubling trend when we see education levels rising among the ranks of the impoverished," Rathge says. "In part, some of this can be explained by college students who are continuing their education while living modestly, which is typically a temporary situation. However, much of it is the reality of a skills mismatch with available job opportunities." North Dakota counties in the southwestern part of the state tend to have a larger proportion of poor who are college educated. In a majority of counties south and west of the Missouri River, at least 10 percent of people ages 25 to 64 living in poverty had a bachelor's degree or higher form of education in 2000. Nationally, the percentage of people ages 25 to 64 living in poverty who are college educated was slightly lower than North Dakota at 8.8 percent in 1980, 7.8 percent in 1990 and 9.3 percent in 2000. ### Source:
Richard Rathge, (701) 231-8621, richard.rathge@ndsu.edu
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