About 1.4 million New Jersey residents over 25 have a Bachelor's degree, but those residents are not split evenly across the state.
There's a clear divide in New Jersey over college degrees, according to recently published Census data.
About 1.4 million New Jersey residents over 25 have a Bachelor's degree, but those residents are not split evenly across the state. Towns with a high percentage of college graduates tend to be far wealthier than their less-educated counterparts, according to data from the 2011-2015 American Community Survey snapshot.
Wealthier counties, such as Bergen and Morris, also have higher numbers of college graduates over the age of 25.
The correlation between degrees and income goes both ways. Bachelor's recipients earn $580,000 more over the course of their careers compared to less-educated residents, according to the Brookings Institution. For the residents living in well-off towns, a degree may have paid off for them later in life.
But recent research shows that a college degree does more to consolidate existing wealth than to promote income mobility. Most low-income young adults cannot afford to go to college, leading to student populations that are far richer than their surrounding communities.
Rutgers University students, for example, have a median family income of $103,500, far above the state median of $72,000, according to The New York Times.
New Jersey has gotten more educated in the past ten years, but the increase is fairly small. The percent of residents 25 or older with at least some college education has increased 4 percent between the 2006-2010 and 2011-2015 snapshots.
Younger residents have fared better, with the percent of 18 to 24-year-olds with some college increasing 9 percent.
Erin Petenko may be reached at epetenko@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @EPetenko. Find NJ.com on Facebook.