Technical information:  (202) 691-7410       USDL 05-732
               http://www.bls.gov/nls/
                                             For release:  10:00 A.M. EDT
Media contact:          (202) 691-5902       Wednesday, April 27, 2005


          WORK ACTIVITY OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS:  DATA FROM THE
                NATIONAL LONGITUDINAL SURVEY OF YOUTH 1997
   
   Based upon the recurring interviews of a panel of young people conducted
over the 1997-2003 period, work activity for high school students varied
substantially depending upon the specific grade they were attending.  For
example, 23 percent of high school freshmen worked during the school year,
while nearly 75 percent of high school seniors worked at some time during
the school year.  Many students who eventually graduated from high school
worked long hours during the school year; about a quarter of working fresh-
men averaged 21 or more hours of work per week, as did 56 percent of working
seniors.
   
   These findings are from the first six annual rounds of the National
Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997, which is sponsored by the Bureau of
Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor.  The survey provides
information on the employment experiences, schooling, family background,
social behavior, and other characteristics of youths.  The survey includes
a nationally representative sample of about 9,000 young men and women who
were born during the years 1980 to 1984.  These respondents were ages 12 to
17 when first interviewed in 1997, and ages 18 to 23 when interviewed for a
sixth time in 2002-03.  For this release, respondents born in 1984 were
excluded from the analysis because many had not yet completed high school.
The remaining respondents, born in the years 1980-83, attended high school
during the years 1994 to 2002.

   This release focuses on the employment experiences of these youths while
in high school.  The release examines only "employee jobs," also known as
wage and salary jobs, in which youths have an ongoing formal relationship
with a particular employer.  "Freelance jobs," such as babysitting or lawn
care, in which youths are more casually involved in the labor market are
not examined.  Highlights from the longitudinal survey include:
     
     --Forty-one percent of high school freshmen worked during the school
       year or following summer, compared with 87 percent of seniors.
     
     --Year-round attachment to the formal labor market forms early while
       in high school.  Nearly 18 percent of freshmen worked during both
       the school year and the following summer.  By sophomore year, the
       percent of students who worked during both school and summer doubled
       to 39 percent.  By senior year, two-thirds of students worked during
       both the school year and summer.

     --Working students who eventually graduated often worked 21 or more
       hours per week.  Nearly 24 percent of working freshmen worked 21 or
       more hours per week during the school year, as did 56 percent of
       working seniors.

     --Of the 75 percent of seniors who worked during the school year, over
       three-fourths worked more than 50 percent of school weeks.  About 1
       in 5 employed seniors worked more than 50 percent of school weeks and
       averaged 31 or more hours of work per week.

                                  - 2 -

Youths in Jobs during High School
   
   For many youths, the introduction to the formal labor market begins at a
young age.  (See table 1.)  Nearly 41 percent of freshmen worked at some time
during the school year or following summer.  Almost 23 percent of freshmen
worked at some point during the school year.  Eighteen percent worked during
both the school year and the following summer, but not necessarily the entire
school year and summer.
   
   The percent of enrolled youths who worked at some point during the school
year was substantially higher at each successive grade.  Among high school
sophomores, 45 percent worked during the school year.  Nearly two-thirds of
juniors worked during the school year, as did nearly three-fourths of seniors.
   
   Among high school freshmen and sophomores, young men are more likely to
work than are young women.  By the senior year, however, young men and women
are equally likely to have jobs.                                 

   Differences in employment activities are also apparent by race and
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity.  Among freshmen, 44 percent of non-Hispanic
whites held a job during the school year or following summer, compared with
34 percent of non-Hispanic blacks and 32 percent of Hispanics or Latinos.
Students in all three race or ethnic groups were substantially more likely
to work at each successive grade level, but non-Hispanic whites remained
more likely to work than non-Hispanic blacks and Hispanics or Latinos.
   
   Of high school students who worked, the majority worked at some time
during both the academic year and the following summer.  Even as freshmen,
45 percent of those who worked did so during both the school year and the
following summer, as did 60 percent of working sophomores, 73 percent of
working juniors, and 77 percent of working seniors.  At advanced grade
levels, comparatively few employed students worked only during the summer
without also having worked during the previous school year.  Among working
freshmen, 45 percent worked during the summer only; however, just 18 percent
of juniors and 14 percent of seniors worked during the summer without having
worked during the previous school year.  (See table 2.)
   
   Employed non-Hispanic black students were less likely to work during
both the school year and summer and more likely to work only in the summer
than were employed non-Hispanic white students.  Among freshmen, 33 percent
of non-Hispanic black students worked at some point during both the school
year and following summer, compared with 47 percent of non-Hispanic white
students.  Among seniors, 69 percent of non-Hispanic black students worked
during both the school year and following summer, compared with 80 percent
of non-Hispanic white students.
   
Graduates:  Intensity of Work while in High School
   
   Working students who eventually graduated from high school spent a large
amount of time at work while also juggling their academic requirements.  More
than half of freshmen who worked during the school year worked more than 50
percent of the school weeks, although most worked 10 hours or less per week.
(See table 3.)  By their sophomore year in high school, 54 percent of students
who worked during the school year worked more than half of their school weeks,
with 18 percent of them averaging 21 or more hours per week.  By their senior
year, three-quarters of employed students worked more than half of school weeks.
Moreover, 25 percent of seniors worked over half of the school year and averaged
between 21 and 30 hours a week, while an additional 20 percent worked more than
half of the school year and averaged 31 or more hours a week.
   
   Non-Hispanic blacks who worked during the school year and eventually gra-
duated from high school were less likely than non-Hispanic whites to have
worked more than half the weeks of the school year.  Regardless of the number
of school weeks they worked, however, blacks in every grade level were more
likely than whites to average more than 21 hours of work per week.

                                  - 3 -

Dropouts:  Intensity of Work while in High School
   
   The working behavior during the school year of students who later drop
out differs from the working behavior of students who eventually graduate.
Youths who eventually dropped out of high school were less likely than
their peers to have worked more than half of the school year prior to the
one in which they dropped out.  (See tables 4, 5, and 6.)  For example,
52 percent of working youths who dropped out of high school during their
senior year worked more than half of the school weeks during their junior
year.  By comparison, among youths who eventually graduated from high
school, 70 percent of those who worked during their junior year worked more
than half the weeks of that school year.

   Eventual dropouts who worked more than half of the school weeks tended
to work more hours per week than did their counterparts who eventually
graduated.  For example, students who dropped out as sophomores and worked
more than half the school weeks during their freshmen year were nearly twice
as likely as their freshmen counterparts who eventually graduated to average
21 or more hours of work per week.  This pattern continued for youths who
dropped out in later years.  Among students who dropped out as seniors and
worked more than half the school weeks during their junior year, 33 percent
averaged 21 or more hours of work per week.  By comparison, 29 percent of
juniors who worked more than half the school year and eventually graduated
averaged 21 or more work hours per week.
   
   The longer that students remain in high school, the less likely they are
to drop out.  Among students enrolled as freshmen, 23 percent did not receive
a high school diploma by age 20.  (See table 7.)  Sixteen percent of students
who started their sophomore year eventually dropped out, as did 10 percent of
students who started their junior year.  Of students who remained in high
school until the start of their senior year, just 4 percent dropped out before
graduating.  Students who worked during their freshman or sophomore years of
high school were somewhat more likely to drop out than were students who did
not work during those same grades. Among freshmen, 29 percent of those who
worked during the school year eventually dropped out of school, compared with
22 percent of those who did not work.  Eighteen percent of sophomores who
worked eventually dropped out of high school, compared with 15 percent of
sophomores who did not work.  Among students who remained in high school until
their junior or senior years, those who worked were about equally likely as
those who did not work to drop out of high school.
   
   



                                  - 4 -

Technical Note

   
   The estimates in this release were obtained using data from the first
six rounds of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97).  The
NLSY97 is the newest survey in the National Longitudinal Surveys program.
The NLSY97 collects extensive information on youths' labor market behavior
and educational experiences.  Information about respondents' families and
communities also is obtained in the survey.
   
   This survey is conducted by the National Opinion Research Center at the
University of Chicago and the Center for Human Resource Research at The Ohio
State University, under the direction and sponsorship of the Bureau of Labor
Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor.  Partial funding support for the
survey has been provided by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention of the U.S. Department of Justice, the Office of Vocational and
Adult Education of the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Department of
Defense, and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
     
Sample

   The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 is a nationally repre-
sentative sample of 8,984 young men and women who were ages 12 to 16 on
December 31, 1996.  This sample is composed of two subsamples:
     
   --A cross-sectional sample designed to represent the noninstitutionalized,
     civilian segment of young people living in the U.S. in 1997 and born be-
     tween January 1, 1980, and December 31, 1984.

   --A supplemental sample of youths designed to oversample Hispanic or
     Latino and black youths living in the U.S. in 1997 and born between
     January 1, 1980, and December 31, 1984.
     
   The sixth round of annual interviews took place between November 2002
and May 2003.  For this news release, youths born in 1984 were dropped
from the sample because their high school education history was not yet
complete.  All results are weighted using the sixth-round survey weights
that correct for oversampling and nonresponse.  When weighted, the data
represent all Americans living in the U.S. in 1997 and born in the years
1980 to 1983.  U.S. immigrants who were born from 1980 to 1983 and
moved to the U.S. after 1997 are not represented by the survey.
   
   Sample size varies both between and within tables.  For example, the
sample in table 4 has youths who worked during their freshman year and then
dropped out as sophomores compared with freshmen who later graduated, while
the sample for table 5 is youths who dropped out as juniors and who worked
during their sophomore school years compared with sophomores who later
graduated.

Interaction between time and age in a longitudinal survey

   Because the NLSY97 is a longitudinal survey, meaning the same people are
surveyed over time, the ages of the respondents change with each survey round.
It is important to keep in mind this inherent link between the calendar years
and the ages of the respondents.  For example, table 1 reports employment by
grade in school.  The majority of the youngest respondents in the sample (birth
year 1983) were enrolled in high school during 1998-2002, whereas the oldest
respondents (birth year 1980) were enrolled in high school from 1994-1998.
Some respondents may not be used in all tables if information about their work
history is incomplete.
 
                                  - 5 -

Definitions
     
   Employment.  Respondents are classified as employed if they did any work
as paid employees at "employee jobs."  This excludes youths who worked in
"freelance jobs," either in their own businesses (self-employed), or as
unpaid workers in a business owned by a member of their family.  An employee
job is one in which the youth has an ongoing relationship with a particular
employer, such as working in a supermarket or restaurant.  A freelance job
involves doing one or a few tasks without a specific "boss," like babysitting
or mowing lawns or working for oneself.
     
   School year and following summer.  The school term is defined as the
period from September through May.  The summer is composed of June, July,
and August.
   
   Determining dropout date.  To determine if an individual has dropped out
of school, enrollment status is determined at two points in time: in either
September or October and then again in either April or May.  Dropouts are
shown in the tables based on the last school year that they completed.
      
   Race and ethnic groups.  In this release, the findings are reported for
non-Hispanic whites, non-Hispanic blacks, and Hispanics or Latinos.  These
groups are mutually exclusive but not exhaustive.  Other groups, which are
included in the overall totals, are not shown separately because their
representation in the survey sample is not sufficiently large to provide
statistically reliable estimates.  In other BLS publications, estimates are
published for whites, blacks, and Hispanics or Latinos, but these groups
usually are not mutually exclusive.  The term "Hispanic or Latino" is
considered to be an ethnic group and can be of any race.  Most other BLS
publications include estimates for Hispanics or Latinos in the white and
black race groups in addition to the Hispanic or Latino ethnic group.
   
   Information in this release will be made available to sensory-impaired
individuals upon request.  Voice phone:  202-691-5200; TDD message referral
phone: 1-800-877-8339.





Table 1.  Percent of enrolled youths with an employee job during the school year and the following
summer by grade in school, sex, race, Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, dropout status and timing of
employment 
                    
                               Percent of     Percent who worked during the school year   
                               students who                                            Percent who
Grade level, characteristic,   ever worked             Worked during   Worked during  worked during
and age at the start of the     during the      Total   school year     school year    summer only  
school year                  school year or              and summer        only
                             following summer                
                            
     Total, freshmen.........      40.6          22.6       18.2            4.2            18.0
                    
Male.........................      45.5          26.1       21.0            4.9            19.3
Female.......................      35.4          18.7       15.1            3.5            16.7
                    
White non-Hispanic...........      44.1          25.3       20.7            4.5            18.7
Black non-Hispanic...........      34.2          14.6       11.0            3.4            19.5
Hispanic or Latino...........      32.2          18.9       14.5            4.4            13.4
                     
Eventually graduated.........      36.6          18.7       15.7            2.8            17.8    
Eventually dropped out.......      41.5          25.3       17.1            7.8            16.3
                          
     Total, sophomores.......      65.4          44.9       39.1            5.5            20.4 
                    
Male.........................      68.4          48.4       41.9            6.1            19.9    
Female.......................      62.0          41.1       36.0            4.9            20.9
                        
White non-Hispanic...........      70.8          49.6       44.1            5.2            21.1      
Black non-Hispanic...........      54.0          33.3       27.8            5.1            20.5
Hispanic or Latino...........      55.6          38.4       30.8            7.3            17.0
                    
Eventually graduated.........      62.4          40.4       35.6            4.4            22.0   
Eventually dropped out.......      62.1          45.0       34.6            9.9            17.0
                        
     Total, juniors..........      78.6          64.6       56.8            7.7            13.8        
                        
Male.........................      79.9          65.3       57.3            8.0            14.5       
Female.......................      77.2          63.9       56.3            7.4            13.2
                    
White non-Hispanic...........      82.5          69.3       62.9            6.3            13.2  
Black non-Hispanic...........      70.0          55.5       43.9           11.3            14.3
Hispanic or Latino...........      70.7          55.0       44.8           10.2            15.6
                    
Eventually graduated ........      76.8          61.8       54.6            7.1            14.9
Eventually dropped out ......      70.5          59.0       44.9           13.9            11.3                
                        
     Total, seniors,.........      86.7          74.5       66.3            7.9            11.8        
                        
Male.........................      86.4          73.6       65.3            8.0            12.6       
Female.......................      86.9          75.5       67.4            7.7            11.1
                    
White non-Hispanic...........      89.7          78.3       71.2            6.7            11.1  
Black non-Hispanic...........      79.5          66.6       54.9           11.4            12.7
Hispanic or Latino...........      80.6          67.0       55.8           11.1            13.3
                    

   NOTE:  Totals may be greater than the sum of their parts because in some cases it is possible
to determine if a youth worked during the school year without being able to determine if they also 
worked during the summer.  The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 consists of young men 
and women who were ages 12 to 16 on December 31, 1996.  Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity groups
are mutually exclusive but not exhaustive.  Other race groups, which are included in the overall 
totals, are not shown separately because their representation in the survey sample is not 
sufficiently large to provide statistically reliable estimates.  The school year is defined as 
September through May, excluding the last full week of December and the first week of January.  
Summer is defined as June, July, and August.                 
                    
Table 2.  Distribution of employed high school students by grade, sex, race, Hispanic
or Latino ethnicity, dropout status, and timing of employment 
                    
                              Percent employed during either the school year or summer    
                                                       
Grade level, characteristic      Worked during       Worked during     Worked during
and dropout status                school year         school year       summer only  
                                  and summer              only
                                             
                            
     Total, freshmen.........        45.0                 10.5              44.5         
                      
Male.........................        46.5                 10.9              42.7      
Female.......................        42.9                  9.9              47.2       
                        
White non-Hispanic...........        47.1                 10.2              42.7       
Black non-Hispanic...........        32.5                 10.0              57.5      
Hispanic or Latino...........        44.9                 13.6              41.5     
         
Eventually graduated.........        43.2                  7.8              49.0        
Eventually dropped out.......        41.5                 19.0              39.4   
                          
     Total, sophomores.......        60.1                  8.5              31.4      
                    
Male.........................        61.7                  9.0              29.4     
Female.......................        58.2                  7.9              33.8      
                          
White non-Hispanic...........        62.6                  7.4              29.9
Black non-Hispanic...........        52.1                  9.5              38.3
Hispanic or Latino...........        55.9                 13.3              30.8

Eventually graduated.........        59.6                  6.8              33.6
Eventually dropped out.......        62.6                 12.8              24.6

     Total, juniors..........        72.5                  9.9              17.7
                        
Male.........................        71.8                 10.0              18.2
Female.......................        73.2                  9.7              17.1

White non-Hispanic...........        76.4                  7.7              16.0
Black non-Hispanic...........        63.1                 16.2              20.7
Hispanic or Latino...........        63.4                 14.4              22.1

Eventually graduated ........        57.5                  7.1              35.4    
Eventually dropped out ......        56.3                 16.1              27.6            
                         
     Total, seniors,.........        77.1                  9.2              13.8      
                            
Male.........................        76.0                  9.4              14.6    
Female.......................        78.2                  9.0              12.9   
                    
White non-Hispanic...........        80.0                  7.6              12.5     
Black non-Hispanic...........        69.4                 14.4              16.1      
Hispanic or Latino...........        69.5                 13.9              16.6     
                    

    NOTE:  The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 consists of young men
and women who were ages 12 to 16 on December 31, 1996.  Race and Hispanic or
Latino  ethnicity groups are mutually exclusive but not exhaustive.  Other race
groups, which are included in the overall totals, are not shown separately because 
their representation in the survey sample is not sufficiently large to provide
statistically reliable estimates.  The school year is defined as September through
May, excluding  the last full week of December and the first week of January.  Summer
is defined as June, July, and August.                 
                    
Table 3.  Distribution of employed high school students who eventually graduated by year in school, sex, race, Hispanic
or Latino ethnicity, percent of school weeks worked, and average hours worked per week

                                                   Percent of those employed during the school year

                               Worked 50 percent or fewer of school weeks     Worked 51 percent or more of school weeks
     Characteristic                      Average hours worked per week                 Average hours worked per week
                               Total  10 hours  11 to     21 to    31 hours  Total  10 hours   11 to    21 to   31 hours
                                      or less  20 hours  30 hours  or more          or less   20 hours 30 hours or more
 
Freshmen ..................     46.2    19.2      14.8      6.1      6.1      51.8    26.4      13.7      6.2      5.5
 Male......................     45.5    17.7      15.6      6.1      6.0      52.2    25.5      12.9      6.8      7.0
 Female....................     47.1    21.2      13.5      6.1      6.2      51.2    27.7      14.8      5.3      3.4
 White non-Hispanic .......     44.7    19.6      13.7      5.4      6.0      54.0    27.9      14.7      6.5      4.9
 Black non-Hispanic .......     59.5    17.5      19.6     11.7     10.8      37.9    13.3      11.0      9.2      4.5
 Hispanic or Latino .......     46.8    17.1      18.5      8.1      3.1      47.0    26.5       6.6      2.1     11.8

Sophomores ................     44.8    11.5      18.2      9.0      6.2      54.0    14.1      22.0     11.7      6.2
 Male .....................     44.8    12.3      16.3      9.2      7.1      54.1    13.1      21.1     12.0      7.8
 Female ...................     44.7    10.5      20.4      8.7      5.1      53.9    15.3      23.0     11.4      4.3
 White non-Hispanic .......     42.3    12.4      17.1      8.1      4.7      56.7    15.2      24.2     11.9      5.5
 Black non-Hispanic .......     53.4     8.3      19.8     13.5     11.8      45.9     6.8      14.0     15.0     10.1
 Hispanic or Latino .......     52.1    11.1      19.4     10.1     11.5      44.7    14.0      17.0      7.4      6.3

Juniors ...................     28.9     5.0      12.5      6.4      5.0      69.6    11.3      29.2     19.4      9.6
 Male .....................     29.9     4.9      13.0      6.6      5.4      68.1     9.3      26.7     20.0     12.1
 Female ...................     27.9     5.2      12.0      6.2      4.5      71.0    13.4      31.8     18.8      7.1
 White non-Hispanic .......     26.9     5.4      11.9      5.3      4.3      71.7    12.1      30.6     19.6      9.4
 Black non-Hispanic .......     36.0     2.7      14.4      9.9      9.1      62.4     4.9      26.3     18.9     12.3
 Hispanic or Latino .......     35.5     4.2      16.4      9.9      5.0      61.6     9.3      22.8     19.9      9.6

Seniors ...................     23.4     3.2       8.5      5.8      5.9      75.2     6.3      24.5     24.5     19.9
 Male .....................     24.2     2.9       8.3      5.9      7.1      74.3     5.8      21.0     24.8     22.7
 Female ...................     22.7     3.4       8.7      5.8      4.8      76.1     6.8      27.8     24.3     17.1
 White non-Hispanic .......     20.9     2.9       7.9      5.1      4.9      77.9     7.2      26.2     25.1     19.5
 Black non-Hispanic .......     34.7     3.1      11.7     10.1      9.8      63.9     3.0      19.9     23.6     17.4
 Hispanic or Latino .......     25.6     2.5       8.0      6.2      8.8      71.5     4.2      19.4     25.4     22.4

   NOTE:  Totals do not add to 100 percent because the exact number of weeks or hours of employment could not be 
calculated for a small number of employed youth.  The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 consists of young men 
and women who were ages 12 to 16 on December 31, 1996.  Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity groups are mutually 
exclusive but not exhaustive.  Other race groups, which are included in the overall totals, are not shown separately 
because their representation in the survey sample is not sufficiently large to provide statistically reliable estimates.
The school year is defined as September through May, excluding the last full week of December and the first week of 
January.  Summer is defined as June, July, and August.





Table 4.  Distribution of employed high school freshmen who dropped out as sophomores and those who eventually graduated
by sex, race, Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, percent of school weeks worked, and average hours worked per week

                                                    Percent of those employed during the school year

                                 Worked 50 percent or fewer of school weeks   Worked 51 percent or more of school weeks
     Characteristic                       Average hours worked per week                Average hours worked per week
                               Total   10 hours  11 to     21 to   31 hours  Total 10 hours   11 to     21 to   31 hours
                                       or less  20 hours  30 hours or more         or less   20 hours  30 hours or more

Freshman who dropped out
 as sophomores.............     46.7    12.5      19.1     11.3      3.8      49.1     4.6      25.0      8.5     11.0

 Male......................     40.2     9.2      17.8     11.7      1.5      55.2     6.3      29.4      8.0     11.6
 Female....................     63.6    21.2      22.5     10.2      9.7      33.0      -       13.8      9.8      9.4

 White non-Hispanic .......     44.6    16.9      11.6     12.2      3.9      51.8     5.3      27.3      8.0     11.2
 Black non-Hispanic .......     35.5     6.9      21.3      7.3       -       57.5     6.8      20.9     22.0      7.9
 Hispanic or Latino .......     56.4      -       36.7     12.7      7.0      37.8      -       23.2       -      14.7

Freshman who eventually
 graduated.................     46.2    19.2      14.8      6.1      6.1      51.8    26.4      13.7      6.2      5.5

 Male .....................     45.5    17.7      15.6      6.1      6.0      52.2    25.5      12.9      6.8      7.0
 Female ...................     47.1    21.2      13.5      6.1      6.2      51.2    27.7      14.8      5.3      3.4

 White non-Hispanic .......     44.7    19.6      13.7      5.4      6.0      54.0    27.9      14.7      6.5      4.9
 Black non-Hispanic .......     59.5    17.5      19.6     11.7     10.8      37.9    13.3      11.0      9.2      4.5
 Hispanic or Latino .......     46.8    17.1      18.5      8.1      3.1      46.5    26.5       6.1      2.1     11.8

    NOTE:  Totals do not add to 100 percent because the exact number of weeks or hours of employment could not be 
calculated for a small number of employed youth.  A dash indicates that no cases were found in the survey sample.  The 
National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 consists of young men and women who were ages 12 to 16 on December 31, 1996.
Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity groups are mutually exclusive but not exhaustive.  Other race groups, which are 
included in the overall totals, are not shown separately because their representation in the survey sample is not 
sufficiently large to provide statistically reliable estimates.  The school year is defined as September through May, 
excluding the last full week of December and the first week of January.  Summer is defined as June, July, and August.





Table 5.  Distribution of employed high school sophomores who dropped out as juniors and those who eventually graduated 
by sex, race, Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, percent of school weeks worked, and average hours worked per week

                                                    Percent of those employed during the school year

                               Worked 50 percent or fewer of school weeks    Worked 51 percent or more of school weeks
      Characteristic                     Average hours worked per week                 Average hours worked per week
                               Total  10 hours  11 to     21 to   31 hours   Total  10 hours  11 to    21 to   31 hours
                                      or less  20 hours  30 hours or more           or less  20 hours 30 hours or more

Sophomores who dropped out
 as juniors................     46.9     4.4      14.3     13.2     15.0      50.8     7.8    17.5     12.4     13.1
 
 Male......................     47.1     1.8      19.1     15.7     10.5      50.0     3.5    14.9     13.5     18.1
 Female....................     46.5     9.4       4.9      8.4     23.8      52.3    16.3    22.4     10.1      3.5

 White non-Hispanic .......     40.3     3.6      10.8     11.3     14.7      57.8    10.6    21.7     10.8     14.7
 Black non-Hispanic .......     59.7     9.8      15.2     20.8     13.9      34.3     3.0     5.5     14.5     11.3
 Hispanic or Latino .......      (1)     (1)       (1)      (1)      (1)       (1)     (1)     (1)      (1)      (1)

Sophomores who eventually 
 graduated.................     44.8    11.5      18.2      9.0      6.2      54.0    14.1    22.0     11.7      6.2

 Male .....................     44.8    12.3      16.3      9.2      7.1      54.1    13.1    21.1     12.0      7.8
 Female ...................     44.7    10.5      20.4      8.7      5.1      53.9    15.3    23.0     11.4      4.3

 White non-Hispanic .......     42.3    12.4      17.1      8.1      4.7      56.7    15.2    24.2     11.9      5.5
 Black non-Hispanic .......     53.4     8.3      19.8     13.5     11.8      45.9     6.8    14.0     15.0     10.1
 Hispanic or Latino .......     52.1    11.1      19.4     10.1     11.5      44.7    14.0    17.0      7.4      6.3

   1  Data not shown where cell size is less than 50.
   NOTE:  Totals do not add to 100 percent because the exact number of weeks or hours of employment could not be 
calculated for a small number of employed youth.  The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 consists of young men
and women who were ages 12 to 16 on December 31, 1996.  Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity groups are mutually 
exclusive but not exhaustive.  Other race groups, which are included in the overall totals, are not shown separately 
because their representation in the survey sample is not sufficiently large to provide statistically reliable estimates.
The school year is defined as September through May, excluding the last full week of December and the first week of 
January.  Summer is defined as June, July, and August.






Table 6.  Distribution of employed high school juniors who dropped out as seniors and those who eventually graduated by
sex, race, Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, percent of school weeks worked, and average hours worked per week

                                                    Percent of those employed during the school year

                                Worked 50 percent or fewer of school weeks    Worked 51 percent or more of school weeks
      Characteristic                      Average hours worked per week                Average hours worked per week
                                Total  10 hours  11 to     21 to   31 hours  Total  10 hours   11 to    21 to   31 hours
                                       or less  20 hours  30 hours or more          or less   20 hours 30 hours or more

Juniors who dropped out
 as seniors................     47.6     2.1      20.6     14.7     10.1      52.4     6.7      12.5    16.6     16.6
 
 Male......................     49.8     1.8      20.8     16.3     10.9      50.2    11.2      13.2    11.1     14.6
 Female....................     44.3     2.5      20.3     12.5      9.0      55.7      -       11.4    24.9     19.5

 White non-Hispanic .......     45.3      -       23.2     15.6      6.5      54.7     9.9      11.0    17.8     16.1
 Black non-Hispanic .......     47.8    17.4       8.3      8.8     13.3      52.2      -         -     22.1     30.1
 Hispanic or Latino .......      (1)     (1)       (1)      (1)      (1)       (1)     (1)       (1)     (1)      (1)

Juniors who eventually 
 graduated.................     28.9     5.0      12.5      6.4      5.0      69.6    11.3      29.2    19.4      9.6

 Male .....................     29.9     4.9      13.0      6.6      5.4      68.1     9.3      26.7    20.0     12.1
 Female ...................     27.9     5.2      12.0      6.2      4.5      71.0    13.4      31.8    18.8      7.1

 White non-Hispanic .......     26.9     5.4      11.9      5.3      4.3      71.7    12.1      30.6    19.6      9.4
 Black non-Hispanic .......     36.0     2.7      14.4      9.9      9.1      62.4     4.9      26.3    18.9     12.3
 Hispanic or Latino .......     35.5     4.2      16.4      9.9      5.0      61.6     9.3      22.8    19.9      9.6


    1  Data not shown where cell size is less than 50.
    NOTE:  Totals do not add to 100 percent because the exact number of weeks or hours of employment could not be 
calculated for a small number of employed youth.  The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 consists of young men
and women who were ages 12 to 16 on December 31, 1996.  Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity groups are mutually 
exclusive but not exhaustive.  Other race groups, which are included in the overall totals, are not shown separately 
because their representation in the survey sample is not sufficiently large to provide statistically reliable estimates.
The school year is defined as September through May, excluding the last full week of December and the first week of 
January.  Summer is defined as June, July, and August.






Table 7.  Percent of high school students who did not receive a diploma by age 20 
by grade, sex, race, Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, and employment status during
the school year 						
						
                                                    Employment status during
          Characteristic                 Total           the school year
                                                    Worked     Did not work
	
Freshmen..........................        23.3       29.0         21.6	
						
   Male...........................        25.5       28.8         24.3	
   Female.........................        21.0       29.4         18.9	

   White non-Hispanic..............       20.7       26.4         17.9	
   Black non-Hispanic .............       33.0       31.1         43.1	
   Hispanic or Latino .............       27.9       36.4         25.8	
						
Sophomores ........................       16.3       18.0         15.0	
						
   Male ...........................       19.0       20.4         17.7	
   Female .........................       13.4       14.9         12.4	
						
   White non-Hispanic .............       14.1       16.2         12.2	
   Black non-Hispanic .............       23.5       24.4         23.0	
   Hispanic or Latino .............       20.9       24.9         18.5	
						
Juniors ...........................        9.9        9.9         10.0	
						
   Male ...........................       11.1       11.2         10.8	
   Female .........................        8.7        8.4          9.1	
						
   White non-Hispanic .............        8.2        8.5          7.6	
   Black non-Hispanic .............       15.1       13.6         16.9	
   Hispanic or Latino .............       13.6       14.3         12.9	
						
Seniors ...........................        4.4        4.2          4.5	
						
   Male ...........................        5.2        5.4          4.6	
   Female .........................        3.7        3.7          3.6	
						
   White non-Hispanic .............        3.7        3.9          2.9	
   Black non-Hispanic .............        6.5        6.6          6.3	
   Hispanic or Latino .............        7.1        6.8          7.6	
						
						
    NOTE:  The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 consists of young 
men and women who were ages 12 to 16 on December 31, 1996.  Race and Hispanic 
or Latino ethnicity groups are mutually exclusive but not exhaustive.  Other race
groups, which are included in the overall totals, are not shown separately because
their representation in the survey sample is not sufficiently large to provide
statistically reliable estimates.  The school year is defined as September through 
May, excluding the last full week of December and the first week of January.  Summer
is defined as June, July, and August.