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NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDUCATION STATISTICS 

Statistical Analysis Report January 1995 

High School and Beyond: 

1992 Descriptive Summary 

of 1980 High School Sophomores 

12 Years Later 

With an Essay on: 

Educational Attainment of 1980 High School Sophomores 

by 1992 

John Tuma 

Sonya Geis 

MPR Associates, Inc. 

2150 Shattuck Avenue, Suite 800 

Berkeley, CA 94704 

C. Dennis Carroll 

Project Officer 

National Center for Education Statistics 

U.S. Department of Education 

Office of Educational Research and Improvement NCES 
Acknowledgements 

The authors would like to thank all those who contributed to the production of this report. 

At MPR Associates, Laura Horn provided guidance for the project and assistance in working with 

the Data Analysis System. Gary Hoachlander revised the essay and smoothed out some of its 

rougher edges, and Andrea Livingston and Susan Choy edited the report. Lynn Sally and Karen 

Singson prepared the tables and graphics and provided essential production assistance, and Mark 

Premo was very helpful in developing the table parameter files for use with the Data Analysis 

System. 

Paul Planchon and Jeff Owings at the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) 

reviewed early drafts of the report, and offered many suggestions for its improvement. The 

authors would especially like to thank the members of the adjudication panel for their careful 

reading and thoughtful comments. Panel members from NCES were Robert Burton from the 

Statistical Standards and Methodology Division, Andrew Kolstad from the National Assessment 

of Educational Progress (NAEP) Division, and Nabeel Alsalam from the Data Development 

Division. Other panel members were Daniel Madzellan from the Office of Postsecondary 

Education in the U.S. Department of Education, and Carol Fuller from the National Institute of 

Independent Colleges and Universities. 

i 
Foreword 

The National Education Longitudinal Studies (NELS) program of the National Center for 

Education Statistics (NCES) was established to study the educational, vocational, and personal 

development of young people beginning with their elementary or high school years, and 

following them over time as they begin to take on adult roles and responsibilities. Thus far, the 

NELS program consists of three major studies: the National Longitudinal Study of the High 

School Class of 1972 (NLS-72), High School and Beyond (HS&B), and the National Education 

Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88). 

NLS-72 followed the 1972 cohort of high school seniors through 1986, or fourteen years after 

most of this cohort completed high school. The HS&B survey included two cohorts: the 1980 

senior class, and the 1980 sophomore class. Both cohorts were surveyed every two years through 

1986, and the 1980 sophomore class was also surveyed again in 1992. NELS:88 started with the 

cohort of students who were in the eighth grade in 1988, and these students have been surveyed 

every two years since that time. 

This descriptive report describes the educational attainment, employment outcomes, and family 

formation of the 1980 sophomore class in 1992, ten years after most of the students in that cohort 

graduated from high school. The report begins with an essay that explores in some detail the 

relationships between characteristics of the 1980 sophomores, their patterns of enrollment in 

postsecondary education, their postsecondary expectations, and their patterns of educational 

attainment in 1992. The compendium of tables that follows this essay provides summary data on 

the family status, employment outcomes, voting behavior, and activities of the 1980 sophomore 

class in 1992, as well as additional information about their educational experiences not included 

in the essay. Each of the four sections of the compendium is prefaced by a series of bullets that 

highlight the findings of the section. This format was chosen because it illustrates both the level 

of detail that can be achieved in an analysis that uses the HS&B Fourth Follow-up data as well 

as the broad scope of the information in these files. 

ii 
Table of Contents 

Page 

Acknowledgements ............................................ i 

Foreword ................................................... ii 

List of Tables ............................................... iv 

List of Figures ............................................. viii 

Educational Attainment of 1980 High School Sophomores by 1992 ......... 1 

Findings and Conclusions ..................................... 13 

Table Compendium .......................................... 15 

Section 1: Where Did They Start and Where Are They Now? ............ 16 

Section 2: Educational Experiences of the 1980 Sophomore Class ......... 23 

Section 3: Labor Market Outcomes of the 1980 Sophomore Class ......... 47 

Section 4: Voting Behavior, Attitudes, and Family Formation of the 1980 

Sophomore Class .......................................... 60 

Appendices 

Appendix A: Glossary ....................................... 65 

Appendix B: Technical Notes .................................. 88 

Appendix C: Essay Standard Error Tables .......................... 97 

iii 
List of Tables 

Table Page 

1 Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree attained through 

1992, by postsecondary expectations in 1982 ....................... 4 

2 Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree attained through 

1992, by immediate versus delayed entry .......................... 5 

3 Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree attained through 

1992, by postsecondary expectations in 1982 among immediate versus delayed 

entrants ................................................. 6 

4 Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree attained 

through 1992, by timing and intensity of initial postsecondary enrollment . . . 7 

5 Average length of initial delay (in months) among 1980 high school sophomores 

who delayed entry into postsecondary education, by highest degree attained 

through 1992 and type of institution .............................. 9 

6 Average length of initial delay before entering postsecondary education 

(in months) among 1980 high school sophomores, by highest degree 

attained through 1992 and postsecondary expectations ................. 9 

7 Average length of initial delay before entering postsecondary education (in 

months) among 1980 high school sophomores, by highest degree attained 

through 1992, socioeconomic status quartile, and test score quartile ........ 10 

8 Average number of months between first enrollment and attainment of 

degrees, by type of degree, postsecondary expectations, and timing and 

intensity of initial postsecondary enrollment ........................ 11 

9 Average number of postsecondary institutions attended by highest degree 

attained through 1992, by timing and intensity of initial postsecondary 

enrollment ............................................... 13 

1.1 Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by educational 

aspirations in 1982 and selected characteristics ...................... 18 

1.2 Average percentile rank of 1980 high school sophomores on specified 

composite scales, by selected characteristics ........................ 19 

iv 
1.3 Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who reported the 

following as their major activity or activities in 1992, by selected 

characteristics ............................................. 21 

1.4 Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores who reported spending time 

in various unpaid activities in 1992, by selected characteristics ........... 22 

2.1 Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by type of 

postsecondary institution in which they first enrolled, by selected 

characteristics ............................................. 25 

2.2 Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by the timing of 

their first postsecondary enrollment, by selected characteristics ........... 26 

2.3 Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by the timing, 

intensity, and institution type of their initial enrollment in postsecondary 

education, by selected characteristics ............................. 28 

2.4.A Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree 

earned through 1992, by selected characteristics ..................... 30 

2.4.B Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who enrolled in 

postsecondary education immediately after high school by highest degree 

attained through 1992, by selected characteristics .................... 32 

2.4.C Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who delayed 

entry into postsecondary education by highest degree attained through 

1992, by selected characteristics ................................ 33 

2.5 Average length of initial delay in months prior to entry into postsecondary 

education among 1980 high school sophomores, by highest degree attained 

through 1992 and selected characteristics .......................... 34 

2.6.A Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores attaining degrees and average 

number of months between first enrollment and attainment of degrees, by 

type of degree and selected characteristics ......................... 35 

2.6.B Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores who entered postsecondary 

education before November 1982 attaining degrees and average number 

of months between first enrollment and attainment of degrees, by type 

of degree and selected characteristics ............................. 36 

v 
2.6.C Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores who entered postsecondary 

education after October 1982 attaining degrees and average number of 

months between first enrollment and attainment of degrees, by type of 

degree and selected characteristics ............................... 37 

2.7.A Average number of postsecondary institutions attended prior to degree 

attainment by 1980 high school sophomores, by type of degree and 

selected characteristics ....................................... 38 

2.7.B Average number of postsecondary institutions attended prior to degree 

attainment by 1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled before 

November 1982, by type of degree and selected characteristics ........... 39 

2.7.C Average number of postsecondary institutions attended prior to degree 

attainment by 1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled after 

October 1982, by type of degree and selected characteristics ............ 40 

2.7.D Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled 

before November 1982, by average number of postsecondary institutions 

attended prior to bachelor s degree attainment and selected characteristics . . . 41 

2.8.A Average number of periods of enrollment prior to degree attainment 

among 1980 high school sophomores, by type of degree and selected 

characteristics ............................................. 42 

2.8.B Average number of periods of enrollment prior to degree attainment among 

1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled before November 1982, 

by type of degree and selected characteristics ....................... 43 

2.8.C Average number of periods of enrollment prior to degree attainment among 

1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled after October 1982, by 

type of degree and selected characteristics ......................... 44 

2.8.D Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled 

before November 1982, by average number of periods of enrollment 

prior to bachelor s degree attainment and selected characteristics ......... 45 

2.9 Application to and acceptance by graduate and first professional programs 

among 1980 high school sophomores who had earned a bachelor s degree 

by 1992, by selected characteristics .............................. 46 

3.1.A Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by type of labor 

force participation in February 1992, by selected characteristics .......... 49 

vi 
3.1.B Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who had earned 

bachelor s degrees by 1992, by type of labor force participation in 

February 1992 and selected characteristics ......................... 50 

3.2 Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by industry of 

employment in 1992 and selected characteristics ..................... 51 

3.3 Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by occupation 

in 1992 and selected characteristics .............................. 53 

3.4 Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by annual earnings 

in 1991 and selected characteristics .............................. 55 

3.5 Average earnings among 1980 high school sophomores in their first year 

after terminating their education, by highest degree attained and selected 

characteristics ............................................. 56 

3.6.A Average earnings among 1980 high school sophomores in their first and 

third year after attaining a bachelor s degree, by selected characteristics .... 57 

3.6.B Average earnings among 1980 high school graduates in their first and third 

year after attaining an associate s degree, by selected characteristics ....... 58 

3.6.C Average earnings among 1980 high school sophomores in their first and 

third year after attaining a postsecondary certificate, by selected 

characteristics ............................................. 59 

4.1 Voting indicators for 1980 high school sophomores, by selected 

characteristics ............................................. 61 

4.2 Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores who reported in 1992 that they 

valued the specified items in their lives, by selected characteristics ........ 62 

4.3 Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by number of 

times they had been married by 1992 and selected characteristics ......... 63 

4.4 Percentage distribution of 1980 sophomores, by the number of children 

parented through 1992 and selected characteristics .................... 64 

vii 
List of Figures 

Figure Page 

1 Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree attained through 

1992 ................................................... 3 

viii 
Educational Attainment of 1980 High School 

Sophomores by 1992 

In 1992, the National Center for Education Statistics resurveyed the 1980 high school 

sophomores who participated in the earlier rounds of High School and Beyond (HS&B). Ten 

years had passed since these students were scheduled to graduate from high school, and most were 

now 28 or 29 years old. This 1992 survey, the fourth followup of this cohort since the first data 

collection in 1980, examined many aspects of these students' early adult years—enrollment in 

postsecondary education, experience in the labor market, marriage and childrearing, and voting 

behavior, to name a few. Thus, the HS&B Fourth Followup is a rich source of information on 

young adults in the late 1980s and early 1990s. 

For many of these young people, pursuing further education was a major activity during this 

stage of life, and examining patterns of enrollment and participation in postsecondary education 

would be of value for this reason alone. But in addition to being a major activity for many of the 

1980 high school sophomores, postsecondary education was also the key to many of their 

subsequent transitions and achievements, including entry into the labor market, the establishment 

of career goals and opportunities, and family formation. Among the most important consequences 

of the decision to pursue a postsecondary education were the different economic outcomes 

stemming from it. For example, those who earned a postsecondary degree were more likely to be 

employed and tended to have higher earnings than did those 1980 sophomores who did not earn a 

postsecondary degree, and earnings generally increased along with educational attainment.1 For all 

these reasons, then, it is important to understand how different decisions about postsecondary 

participation and enrollment are related to attainment. 

The cohort's experiences and accomplishments in postsecondary education varied greatly. By 

1992, two-thirds of the 1980 high school sophomores had enrolled in some form of postsecondary 

education. This proportion was up from 60 percent of the cohort in 1986 (the year of the third 

followup), indicating that some students delayed initial entry into postsecondary education until 

well into their mid or late twenties.2 Of those who did enroll by 1992, 43 percent enrolled first in 

a 4-year institution, 37 percent in a public 2-year institution, and the remainder in some other type 

of postsecondary institution, most typically a private for-profit or proprietary institution. Given 

these general patterns of postsecondary enrollment, what levels of education did the 1980 high 

school sophomores attain by 1992, and how did attainment vary among different types of students? 

The answers to these questions have many facets. However, at least one pattern stands out. The 

1980 sophomores were much more likely to earn a postsecondary credential if they enrolled in 

postsecondary education immediately after high school than if they delayed their entry. 

1

See tables in Section 3 of the table compendium following this essay for elaboration of these patterns. 

2

Data for 1986 adapted from Eva Eagle, Robert Fitzgerald, Antionette Gifford, and John Tuma, High School 

and Beyond: A Descriptive Summary of 1980 High School Sophomores: Six Years Later (Washington, DC: U.S. 

Department of Education, Office of Educational Research and Improvement, National Center for Education 

Statistics, June 1988), appendix tables C1.1 and C1.2. 

ix 
This essay briefly examines the educational attainment of the 1980 high school sophomores. 

It not only looks at what they had accomplished approximately 10 years after high school but also 

describes some of the ways in which attainment varied within the cohort. Of particular interest are 

such issues as time of entry into postsecondary education, the relationship between attainment and 

postsecondary expectations at the end of high school, differences between full-time and part-time 

students, the amount of time taken to obtain a postsecondary credential, and the number of 

institutions attended during the course of postsecondary attendance. There are some interesting 

findings that should stimulate researchers to delve more deeply into the information provided by 

the HS&B Fourth Followup. 

Highest Degree Attained by 1992 

For many 1980 high school sophomores, the highest degree attained was not postsecondary 

(figure 1). As of 1992, the highest degree earned by about one-half of the cohort—including 

almost 36 percent of those students who had enrolled in a postsecondary institution at some time 

between 1982 and 1992—was a high school diploma. Moreover, by 1992, 6 percent of the 1980 

sophomores still did not have a high school diploma, down from about 8 percent of the cohort in 

1986.3 Therefore, some 1980 sophomores who had not finished high school by 1986 did continue 

to pursue their high school studies and obtained a diploma by 1992; however, three-quarters of 

those who had not earned a high school diploma or its equivalent by 1986 still had not done so 6 

years later. In short, by 1992, for 57 percent of those who were high school sophomores in 1980, 

degree attainment was limited to a high school diploma or no degree at all. While 75 percent of 

these students aspired to some form of postsecondary education as sophomores in high school, the 

majority had not completed a postsecondary credential 12 years later.4 Indeed, one-third had not 

enrolled in any form of postsecondary education at all. 

By 1992, 43 percent of the 1980 high school sophomores had attained some type of 

postsecondary credential. For 19 percent of the cohort, the highest degree attained was 

prebaccalaureate: 11 percent earned a vocational certificate (usually representing the equivalent of 

1 full-time year of postsecondary education), and 8 percent attained an associate's degree. 

Twenty-four percent of the sophomores—or more than half of those earning any type of 

postsecondary credential—attained a bachelor's degree or higher, including 1 percent who earned a 

professional degree or doctorate. Given that the median time from completion of a bachelor's 

degree to completion of a doctorate ranged from 7.5 years in the physical sciences to more than 12 

years in the humanities in 1990–91, it is not surprising that so few members of this cohort had 

attained a professional degree or doctorate.5 A larger percentage of the 1980 high school 

sophomores should attain this status as they move into their early thirties.6 

3

Ibid., table C1.1. 

4

National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond Fourth Followup Data Analysis System, 

1980–1992. 

5

National Center for Education Statistics, Digest of Education Statistics, 1993, tables 290–95. 

6

About 3 percent of the 1980 sophomore class claimed that taking graduate or professional courses was their 

major activity in 1992 (table 1.3 in the Compendium). 

x 
Figure 1 

Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest 

degree attained through 1992 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School and Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

In brief, despite the emphasis in the teenage years on preparation for college, only one in 

four of the 1980 high school sophomores attained a bachelor's degree in the 10 years following 

high school. Another 20 percent or so earned some other type of postsecondary credential. For the 

majority of this cohort, as with the majority of students in earlier cohorts, the high school diploma 

was the only degree attained. 

Postsecondary Attainment and Expectations as High School Seniors 

Were these postsecondary outcomes consistent with the expectations of these students while 

in high school? In one respect, they were (table 1). Seventy-one percent of the 1980 high school 

sophomores who said in 1982 that they did not expect to attain any postsecondary credential 

attained no more than a high school diploma, and 16 percent still were not high school graduates. 

Of those who expected to obtain a bachelor's degree, 64 percent had earned some type of 

postsecondary credential by 1992. In general, postsecondary attainment rose on average with each 

xi 
successively higher level of educational expectations. From this perspective, therefore, the 

postsecondary attainment of the 1980 sophomores mirrored their expectations about postsecondary 

education while in high school.7 

Table 1 

Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree 

attained through 1992, by postsecondary expectations in 1982 

Highest degree through 1992 

Less than 

Student high school High Certi- Assoc- Profescharacteristics graduate school ficate iate's Bachelor's Master's sional Doctorate 

Total 5.8 51.5 11.0 7.9 20.0 2.7 0.9 0.2 

Postsecondary expectations 

in 1982 

None 15.5 71.1 9.3 3.0 1.0 0.1 0.0 0.1 

Vocational-technical 4.6 61.6 19.8 10.7 3.3 0.1 0.0 0.0 

Less than four-year 

degree 1.6 53.2 13.3 15.6 15.0 1.1 0.2 0.0 

College degree 0.9 35.3 6.8 6.3 44.9 5.0 0.8 0.1 

Advanced degree 0.8 28.9 5.2 5.7 45.1 9.0 4.4 0.8 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

From another perspective, however, there was a large gap between what these young people 

aimed for as high school students and what they actually accomplished in postsecondary education 

during the ensuing 10 years. Among those who expected to achieve some level of postsecondary 

degree completion, less than half had actually attained their goals as of June 1992. For example, 

among those who in 1982 expected to complete a 4-year college degree, 51 percent had attained a 

bachelor's degree or higher by 1992, and this rate of attainment was typical of all students, 

7

This essay focuses on the relationship between postsecondary expectations when the 1980 high school 

sophomores were seniors in 1982 and their subsequent postsecondary attainment. However, for many students, 

postsecondary expectations were set much earlier. Data presented in tables 2.1 and 2.2 the table compendium 

following this essay show that students who planned to go to college while in the sixth grade were much more 

likely to enroll in a 4-year institution and to enroll immediately after high school than were students who planned 

not to go, were not sure, or had not thought about college attendance while in the sixth grade. Since it seems 

unlikely that students would independently reach conclusions about their eventual level of educational attainment 

at such a young age, these data suggest that parental encouragement from an early age has a substantial impact 

on the postsecondary attainment of their children. 

xii 
regardless of their different levels of postsecondary expectations.8 Thus, many students tended to 

8

The percentage of students who had attained an advanced degree by 1992 was much smaller than half, but 

part of this outcome can be explained by the relatively limited amount of time that students had to achieve their 

educational goals. 

xiii 
underachieve relative to their educational expectations, and a relatively small percentage of 

students attained degrees that exceeded their expectations.9 

It is possible, of course, that some of these students will still realize their postsecondary 

expectations at a later date. However, the preliminary evidence on this prospect, which is presented 

next, is not encouraging. Delaying entry into postsecondary education appears to carry with it a 

rather low likelihood of completion, at least during the first 10 years after high school. Barring a 

marked reversal in this trend, it is likely that many of the 1980 sophomores who expected to 

pursue postsecondary education but delayed their entry will never realize the postsecondary goals 

they held at the end of high school. 

Postsecondary Attainment and Immediate Versus Delayed Entry 

Rates of postsecondary attainment varied greatly among the 1980 high school sophomores, 

and one of the factors most strongly associated with these differences was the timing of entry into 

postsecondary education. Students who delayed their entry into postsecondary education (defined 

as entry after October 1982) were significantly less likely than those who entered immediately (by 

October 1982) to earn a bachelor's degree or higher (table 2). Forty percent of all 1980 

sophomores who entered postsecondary education immediately after high school had earned a 

bachelor's degree by 1992, and another 7.9 percent had attained an advanced degree. By contrast, 9 

percent of those who delayed entry had attained a bachelor's degree by 1992, with another 1 

percent having attained an advanced degree. Overall, immediate entrants into postsecondary 

Table 2 

Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree 

attained through 1992, by immediate versus delayed entry 

Entry status 

High 

school 

Highest degree through 1992 

Certi- Assocficate iate's Bachelor's Advanced 

degree 

Immediate entrants 29.6 9.9 12.1 40.3 7.9 

Delayed entrants 53.7 24.2 11.7 9.2 1.0 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

9

This relationship between expectations and attainment has been consistent over the last two decades at least. 

In his comparison of the high school classes of 1972 and 1980, Grubb concluded that expectations appear to set 

an upper limit to attainment and that goals are more frequently revised downward than upward. W. Norton 

Grubb, Access, Achievement, Completion, and “Milling Around” in Postsecondary Vocational Education 

(Berkeley, CA: MPR Associates, Inc., April 1989), 25–26. 

xiv 
education were much less likely to be noncompleters at the postsecondary level than were 

those who delayed their entry. While 30 percent of immediate entrants had still not attained 

any type of postsecondary degree or certificate as of June 1992, almost 54 percent of delayed 

entrants had not earned any type of postsecondary degree or certificate by that date. 

The general patterns of differential attainment between immediate and delayed entrants 

persisted when educational expectations were held constant (table 3). Among those who 

expected in 1982 to earn some type of postsecondary degree or certificate, a larger percentage 

of those who delayed entry into postsecondary education than of those who entered 

immediately had attained only a high school degree as of 1992, regardless of the level they 

expected to attain. Additionally, average levels of attainment were higher among immediate 

than delayed entrants who had comparable postsecondary education goals. 

Table 3 

Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree 

attained through 1992, by postsecondary expectations in 1982 

among immediate versus delayed entrants 

Highest degree through 1992 

Postsecondary High Certi- Assoc- Advanced 

expectations in 1982 school ficate iate's Bachelor's degree 

Immediate entrants 

None 49.0 29.0 15.3 6.5 0.0 

Vocational-technical 39.1 29.9 23.5 7.0 0.3 

Less than four-year 

degree 36.7 13.2 23.9 23.9 2.1 

College degree 26.6 5.1 6.5 54.3 7.3 

Advanced degree 22.3 3.5 5.4 52.0 16.7 

Delayed entrants 

None 57.9 27.3 11.1 2.9 0.6 

Vocational-technical 50.2 32.0 13.8 3.9 0.0 

Less than four-year 

degree 57.8 18.4 12.4 10.5 0.7 

College degree 54.6 15.4 8.7 19.9 1.1 

Advanced degree 43.7 16.5 10.2 23.8 5.6 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

xv 
Postsecondary Attainment and Full-Time Versus Part-Time Enrollment 

The 1980 high school sophomores not only were more likely to attain a postsecondary 

credential if they enrolled in postsecondary education immediately after high school but they 

were also more likely to earn a degree if they enrolled immediately and full time (table 4). At 

the 4-year institutions, for example, almost 58 percent of 1980 sophomores who enrolled full 

time in fall 1982 had earned a bachelor's degree by 1992, compared with about one-fourth of 

those who enrolled part time. Similarly, students who enrolled immediately and full time at 

2-year institutions had higher rates of postsecondary attainment: one-fourth of students who 

enrolled in a 2-year public institution full time in fall 1982 had earned a bachelor's degree by 

1992, compared with 14 percent of those who enrolled part time. Likewise, 24 percent of 

those who enrolled immediately and full time in a 2-year public institution had earned an 

associate's degree by 1992, while 9 percent of those who enrolled part time in fall 1982 had 

attained an associate's degree. 

Table 4 

Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree attained 

through 1992, by timing and intensity of initial postsecondary enrollment 

Highest degree through 1992 

Less than 

Type of start in high school High Certi- Assoc- Profespostsecondary education graduate school ficate iate's Bachelor's Master's sional Doctorate 

Total 5.8 51.5 11.0 7.9 20.0 2.7 0.9 0.16 

4-year institution 

Full-time fall 1982 * 21.2 3.5 4.6 57.8 9.0 3.4 0.5 

Part-time fall 1982 0.0 52.2 6.7 10.0 27.2 3.5 0.1 0.4 

Delayed entry 0.4 55.6 8.1 7.4 24.0 3.7 0.4 0.4 

2-year public institution 

Full-time fall 1982 0.3 36.5 11.9 24.4 24.6 2.1 0.2 0.0 

Part-time fall 1982 1.6 59.5 13.4 9.4 14.4 0.9 0.8 * 

Delayed entry 1.7 63.0 16.9 12.0 6.2 0.2 0.0 0.0 

Other institution 

Fall 1982 0.2 23.0 34.3 24.5 15.7 1.9 0.4 0.0 

Delayed entry 1.9 31.4 48.4 14.4 3.8 0.1 0.1 0.0 

Other enrollment 0.0 0.0 86.5 5.1 6.0 1.1 0.4 0.8 

No enrollment 16.1 83.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 

* Indicates less than 0.1 percent. 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

xvi 
Interestingly, the rate at which students attained some type of postsecondary degree was 

about the same among immediate part-time entrants to postsecondary education as among 

those who delayed entry. At 4-year institutions, for example, 27 percent of immediate 

part-time entrants had attained a bachelor's degree by 1992, compared with 24 percent of 

those who delayed entry. Students who enrolled part time in 2-year institutions in fall 1982 

were more likely than delayed entrants to earn a bachelor's degree, but rates of completion 

were about the same for both groups with regard to associate's degrees and vocational 

certificates. 

These patterns suggest that differences in attainment may not be as much due to 

differences in the timing of entry as they are due to differences in the intensity of students' 

initial enrollment. There are many plausible reasons why one might find differences in 

attainment between those who enroll immediately full time and those who do not. One 

possibility is that those who enroll full time right after high school are more committed to 

postsecondary education than are other students, and therefore are more likely to complete a 

degree and attain their goals. Alternatively, the timing and intensity of students' initial 

enrollments may reflect other characteristics, such as financial capacity or the presence of 

outside distractions (such as family obligations, work demands, or the proximity of 

noncollege-bound friends), that affect students' inclination and opportunity to complete a 

degree and attain their goals. 

Length of Initial Delay 

The fact that students who delayed entry into postsecondary education were less likely 

to attain a credential may, in part, reflect the length of time they delayed their entry rather 

than delay per se. Long delays after high school would allow less time for completing longer 

term degrees within the 10-year period covered by the fourth followup. Although the data are 

somewhat ambiguous on this point, they do not appear to support this interpretation. Longer 

delays were associated with lower levels of attainment, and this was true whether the student's 

initial enrollment was in a 4-year or a 2-year public institution (table 5). Furthermore, the 

average length of delay, controlling for attainment, was the same regardless of the type of 

institution in which the student initially enrolled. These results suggest that long delays 

adversely affect attainment. It is still possible that students who delayed their enrollment did 

not have time to finish their degree within the 10-year period, but other data on length of 

delay also are not consistent with this interpretation.10 

10The effects of “time censoring”—that is, arbitrarily limiting the period of educational attainment to the 

10-year time frame of the fourth followup—cannot wholly be ruled out, but it does not appear to explain the 

lower levels of attainment among those who delayed their entry into postsecondary education. Only about 5 

percent of the 1980 sophomores entered postsecondary education after June 1986 (see table 2.2 in the 

Compendium), so most postsecondary activity among this cohort took place before then. Nonetheless, about 5 

percent of the sophomores did claim that their major activity in 1992 was taking undergraduate courses, and 

another 2 percent claimed to be enrolled in vocational/technical courses (see table 1.3 in the Compendium). It is 

possible that the findings with regard to the effects of delayed entry could be altered by the educational outcomes 

for these groups, but the relatively small number of students involved makes this unlikely. 

xvii 
Table 5 

Average length of initial delay (in months) among 1980 high school 

sophomores who delayed entry into postsecondary education, 

by highest degree attained through 1992 and type of institution 

Type of 

institution 

Average 

length of 

delay 

(months) 

High 

school 

Average length of delay in months 

by highest degree through 1992 

Certi- Assoc- Advanced 

ficate iate's Bachelor's degree 

Total 13.9 18.9 22.7 12.4 5.5 4.9 

4-year 

2-year public 

28.8 

33.9 

33.3 

36.5 

28.8 

30.8 

29.4 

30.6 

19.4 

20.6 

— 

— 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: The total line includes both immediate entrants and delayed entrants. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

The length of delay before initial entry into postsecondary education was strongly 

associated with students' postsecondary expectations while still in high school. Students with 

lower postsecondary expectations in 1982 delayed their entry longer than those who had higher 

aspirations (table 6). Students who in 1982 had no plans to pursue postsecondary education 

Table 6 

Average length of initial delay before entering postsecondary 

education (in months) among 1980 high school sophomores, by highest 

degree attained through 1992 and postsecondary expectations 

Average Average length of delay in months 

length of by highest degree through 1992 

Postsecondary delay High Certi- Assoc- Advanced 

expectations (1982) (months) school ficate iate's Bachelor's degree 

Total 13.9 18.9 22.7 12.4 5.5 4.9 

None 37.6 38.4 39.1 32.1 — — 

Vocational-technical 20.5 22.4 23.0 14.3 11.9 — 

Less than four-year degree 13.2 17.4 16.1 8.2 6.6 5.8 

College degree 8.2 12.1 17.6 9.0 4.7 4.3 

Advanced degree 6.7 9.6 8.71 0.6 5.0 4.8 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

xviii 
waited an average of 38 months before enrolling in a postsecondary institution, compared 

with an average of 13 months for those who intended to obtain a less-than-4-year degree or 8 

months for those who planned to pursue a bachelor's degree. 

Length of delay was also associated in expected ways with students' socioeconomic 

status (SES) and academic achievement in high school (table 7). Low SES students tended to 

delay their entry into postsecondary education longer than those in the middle two quartiles, 

and those in the middle two quartiles tended to delay longer than did high SES students. 

Furthermore, this pattern was evident at each level of postsecondary attainment. Similarly, 

students with lower achievement test scores in high school delayed entry into postsecondary 

education considerably longer than did students with high test scores. 

Table 7 

Average length of initial delay before entering postsecondary 

education (in months) among 1980 high school sophomores, 

by highest degree attained through 1992, socioeconomic status 

quartile, and test score quartile 

Average Average length of delay in months 

length of by highest degree through 1992 

Student delay High Certi- Assoc- Advanced 

characteristic (months) school ficate iate's Bachelor's degree 

Total 13.9 18.9 22.7 12.4 5.5 4.9 

Socioeconomic status 

Low quartile 21.5 23.8 29.2 15.2 7.7 — 

Middle two quartiles 14.3 19.8 20.2 11.5 5.6 4.5 

High quartile 7.9 11.8 15.2 9.5 4.9 4.9 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 24.6 24.6 31.4 17.0 8.2 — 

Middle two quartiles 14.2 17.8 19.7 11.3 6.0 4.9 

High quartile 7.3 12.7 16.7 7.6 4.8 4.2 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

It should be noted that within each SES and test score quartile, lower levels of 

attainment were strongly associated with longer delays. In other words, although length of 

delay is likely to be greater among students with lower SES and achievement, there is still a 

very strong independent association between delay and attainment. This finding is important 

because it suggests that realizing improvements in rates of postsecondary attainment may 

depend on strategies for decreasing delay of entry, regardless of other variables (such as 

student demographics) that are strongly associated with attainment. 

xix 
Time to Degree 

Another critical variable in understanding variation in the levels of postsecondary 

attainment among the 1980 high school sophomores is the time students took to complete a 

credential once they enrolled in some type of postsecondary institution. As one would expect, 

the time to degree attainment from first postsecondary enrollment to completion of a degree 

varied by the type of degree earned (table 8). For example, the average time needed to 

complete a vocational certificate was 30 months, the average time to complete an associate's 

degree was just over 36 months, and the average time to a bachelor's degree was 56 months. 

Table 8 

Average number of months between first enrollment and 

attainment of degrees, by type of degree, postsecondary 

expectations, and timing and intensity of initial 

postsecondary enrollment 

Postsecondary education 

characteristics 

Certificate Associate's Bachelor's 

Total 29.6 36.8 55.7 

Postsecondary expectations 

None 

Vocational-technical 

Less than 4-year degree 

College degree 

Advanced degree 

18.6 

20.0 

36.4 

44.2 

44.8 

30.7 

29.9 

36.3 

39.8 

43.5 

— 

60.8 

61.6 

55.7 

53.5 

Type of start in postsecondary 

education 

4-year institution 

Full-time fall 1982 

Part-time fall 1982 

Delayed entry 

2-year institution 

Full-time fall 1982 

Part-time fall 1982 

Delayed entry 

Other institution 

Fall 1982 

Delayed entry 

57.2 

— 

36.4 

43.4 

37.6 

32.5 

19.4 

16.5 

47.0 

— 

41.1 

34.6 

55.7 

38.0 

27.8 

28.7 

53.1 

71.1 

48.9 

66.5 

67.6 

66.9 

58.5 

— 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

The time to complete a degree, holding degree types constant, varied by postsecondary 

expectations. In general, students whose first enrollment was in an institution that offered the type 

of degree that they expected to earn took less time to complete their degree than did those who 

changed their plans. While this finding may seem obvious, the effects of changing plans were 

xx 
more pronounced among students who expected to earn a bachelor's or advanced degree but 

ultimately completed a vocational certificate or associate's degree, than among students who 

completed a degree that was higher than what they had expected to earn while in high school.11 

For example, students who earned a vocational certificate when their postsecondary goal was 

a bachelor's degree took, on average, 24 months longer from first enrollment to completion than 

those who started out with a vocational degree as their objective. However, there was no 

significant difference in the time required to earn a bachelor's degree between those who planned 

to earn a vocational certificate and those who set to earn a bachelor's degree. Most likely, students 

who initially enrolled in a 4-year or public 2-year institution pursued a bachelor's or associate's 

degree for some time before realizing that their interests or abilities lay elsewhere; thus, the total 

amount of time enrolled was considerably greater than the amount of time typically required to 

earn the vocational certificate or associate's degree they eventually received.12 This finding is 

important because it underscores the fact that changing one's postsecondary course of study can 

involve a considerable loss of time. Hence, strategies that help students better hone their 

postsecondary objectives and that help students to achieve these objectives may have significant 

payoffs. 

Not surprisingly, time to completion was closely associated with whether or not students 

enrolled full time or part time. Students who enrolled full time in 4-year institutions completed a 

bachelor's degree in 53 months, compared with 71 months for those enrolled part time. Full-time 

students in 2-year institutions finished an associate's degree in 35 months on average, while 

part-time students took an average of 56 months . However, when students enrolled initially in a 

2-year institution and subsequently completed a bachelor's degree, there were no differences among 

full-time, part-time, or delayed-entry students in the average time to completion. For all three 

groups, completing a bachelor's degree took about 67 months. Immediate, full-time entrants to the 

public 2-year institutions were more likely to earn a bachelor's degree than were those who entered 

immediately part time or who delayed their entry, but it took all of these students about the same 

amount of time to attain a bachelor's degree if they succeeded in completing one. 

Attainment and Number of Institutions Attended 

On average, students who completed a bachelor's degree (excluding advanced degree 

recipients) attended more institutions than did those who earned an associate's degree or a 

vocational certificate (table 9). But these differences were due more to the relatively large number 

of students who transferred from a public 2-year or other institution to a 4-year institution than to 

11The degree attainment categories used here are not mutually exclusive, and the certificate earned by those who 

planned to get an associate's degree or higher may not be either the first or the highest degree they attained. 

12The disparity in the amount of time taken to earn a vocational certificate between those who start out expecting to 

earn a bachelor's or advanced degree and those who start with a vocational objective is consistent with the literature 

on “reverse transfer” students, those students who transfer from a 4-year to a 2-year-or-less institution. Based on an 

analysis of the high school classes of 1972 and 1980, Grubb concludes that “. . . reverse transfer is not an especially 

successful route to completing credentials, even compared to the experiences of those students starting in 2-year 

institutions.” Four years after high school, reverse transfer students tended to have low completion rates compared 

with students in 2-year public institutions, presumably because they were still enrolled, and a large percentage of 

them (almost 40 percent) left higher education without completing a credential of any type. See W. Norton Grubb, 

Access, Achievement, Completion, and “Milling Around” in Postsecondary Vocational Education (Berkeley, CA: 

MPR Associates, Inc., April 1989), 33. 

xxi 
the behavior of students who initially enrolled in a 4-year institution. The average number of 

institutions attended by bachelor's degree recipients whose initial enrollment was in a 4-year 

institution (either immediate or delayed) was consistently less than the number of institutions 

attended by bachelor's degree recipients who started in a public 2-year or other institution. 

Likewise, students whose initial enrollment was in a 4-year institution full time in fall 1982 and 

who earned a vocational certificate or associate's degree generally attended more institutions than 

did those whose degree more closely paralleled their initial enrollment. 

Table 9 

Average number of postsecondary institutions attended 

by highest degree attained through 1992, by timing and 

intensity of initial postsecondary enrollment 

Type of start in Certi- Assocpostsecondary education ficate iate's Bachelor's 

Total 1.5 1.4 1.7 

4-year institution 

Full-time fall 1982 2.3 2.0 1.5 

Part-time fall 1982 — — 2.2 

Delayed entry 1.9 1.6 1.4 

2-year institution 

Full-time fall 1982 1.7 1.3 2.3 

Part-time fall 1982 1.7 1.6 2.4 

Delayed entry 1.6 1.3 2.3 

Other institution 

Fall 1982 1.2 1.3 2.1 

Delayed entry 1.1 1.3 — 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

Findings and Conclusions 

Members of the 1980 sophomore class who set high goals in high school tended to have 

higher average levels of educational attainment 10 years after leaving high school than did those 

who had lower postsecondary expectations. In addition, a key finding was that the odds of 

earning a bachelor's degree or higher change when entry into postsecondary education is delayed. 

Those who entered postsecondary education immediately full time were much more likely to 

earn a bachelor's degree or higher than were students who entered part time in fall 1982 or who 

delayed their entry into postsecondary education. This was true regardless of students' level of 

SES or their performance on standardized tests. Furthermore, the longer students delayed their 

entry into postsecondary education, the lower their average levels of 

xxii 
educational attainment. Among those students who delayed entry for longer than about 1 year 

after high school, only one in ten attained a bachelor's degree or higher by 1992. 

The length of delay in entering postsecondary education and the time needed to 

complete a degree influence the differences in rates of attainment between those who enter 

postsecondary education and those who wait. Nevertheless, the mere act of delay appears to 

be strongly associated with the lower likelihood of completing a postsecondary credential, 

especially a bachelor's degree or higher. Thus, while a future followup of this cohort would 

probably show an increase in attainment among those who delayed entry simply because more 

time would have passed, it is very unlikely that future rates would ever approach those who 

began postsecondary education immediately after high school, especially if they enrolled full 

time. 

xxiii 
Table Compendium 

15 
Section 1 

Where Did They Start 

And Where Are They Now? 

Descriptive Characteristics of the 1980 Sophomore Class in 1992 

Educational aspirations of the 1980 sophomores in 1982 (when most of them were high 

school seniors) were related to their socioeconomic status (SES). Those in the lowest SES 

quartile were far more likely to expect no postsecondary education than were those in the 

middle two and highest quartiles. On the other hand, students in the highest quartile were 

much more likely than the other groups to expect college or graduate school (table 1.1). 

The 1980 sophomores' high school grades were positively associated with their SES: as 

grades increased, so too did sophomores' average SES. Test scores were positively 

associated with 1980 family income, high school grades, and parents' educational 

attainment (table 1.2). 

Major Activities of the 1980 Sophomore Class in 1992 

Seventy-nine percent of 1980 high school sophomores reported that working was their 

primary activity during the week before they were surveyed in 1992. About 1 in 10 were 

enrolled in either a training or an academic educational program, and around 1 in 20 

reported being laid off, looking for work, or both (table 1.3). 

Respondents whose mothers worked were neither more nor less likely to be working 

themselves than those whose mothers did not work. Moreover, the employment rates of 

1980 high school sophomores did not vary by the intensity of their mothers' employment 

(full- or part-time) or by the timing of their mothers' employment (before elementary 

school, during elementary school, or during high school) (table 1.3). 

Employment rates varied by race–ethnicity. More than twice the percentage of blacks (8 

percent) than of whites (3 percent) reported that they were looking for work the week 

before they were surveyed, and a larger percentage of whites than of blacks reported that 

they were working during that week. Among Hispanics, the percentages of those who 

were working and of those who were looking for work the week before they were 

surveyed did not differ significantly from those of whites (table 1.3). 

Volunteer Activities of the 1980 Sophomore Class 

The percentage of 1980 high school sophomores who reported spending time engaged in 

volunteer work in 1992 was small. Even if one assumes that no respondents reported 

16 
spending time in more than one activity, almost two-thirds (65 percent) of the cohort did 

not participate in any volunteer activities (table 1.4). 

Participation in voluntary activities varied by gender. Women reported involvement in 

church and education groups at a higher rate than did, while males were more likely than 

females to report spending time in sports groups (table 1.4). 

For married respondents, another factor affecting participation in volunteer activities was 

the presence of children in the family. Married 1980 sophomores with children were more 

likely to participate in education groups, youth clubs, or both than those without children. 

The presence of children was not significantly related to participation in these groups 

among unmarried respondents (table 1.4). 

17 
Table 1.1—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by educational 

aspirations in 1982 and selected characteristics 

Educational aspirations 

High Vocational/ Some College Advanced 

Student characteristics school technical college degree degree 

Total 24.4 20.6 18.0 20.6 16.6 

High school diploma status in 1982 

Regular diploma 18.9 20.3 18.7 23.3 18.7 

Diploma returned 35.0 28.2 18.5 10.9 7.4 

Returned no diploma 46.8 27.4 16.7 3.5 5.7 

No return 65.3 18.8 7.7 3.3 4.8 

Father's 1982 after-high-school aspirations for children 

Go to college 6.0 10.3 21.4 34.2 28.1 

Full-time job 56.7 26.4 10.2 3.5 3.2 

Trade school 19.6 65.8 9.4 2.8 2.4 

Military service 36.0 29.5 14.3 12.3 7.9 

Mother's 1982 after-high-school aspirations for children 

Go to college 6.6 10.9 22.4 33.2 26.9 

Full-time job 60.9 24.4 9.4 2.9 2.4 

Trade school 19.7 70.4 6.6 1.9 1.4 

Military service 40.6 28.6 12.8 11.3 6.8 

Occupational aspiration for age 30 in 1982 

Clerical 33.2 32.9 24.3 7.5 2.2 

Craftsman 44.0 45.2 7.5 2.6 0.7 

Farmer 42.7 24.7 13.7 14.5 4.4 

Homemaker 58.0 17.6 12.6 8.6 3.2 

Laborer 69.5 17.6 9.5 2.3 1.1 

Manager 12.8 16.7 24.0 29.6 16.8 

Military 41.8 24.0 9.6 16.5 8.2 

Operative 59.8 27.5 8.9 2.6 1.2 

Professional 8.7 11.7 19.7 35.5 24.3 

Professional/doctor 5.5 4.2 6.3 18.1 65.9 

Proprietor/owner 29.2 28.7 21.9 14.4 5.9 

Protective service 29.1 17.4 33.0 14.8 5.7 

Sales 25.7 18.4 19.6 30.9 5.5 

School teacher 7.4 3.3 15.6 48.9 24.8 

Service 36.5 42.1 12.0 5.7 3.8 

Technical 9.8 23.8 28.6 24.4 13.4 

Time watching TV (weekdays) in 1982 

No TV weekdays 22.4 19.2 15.9 20.2 22.3 

Less than 1 hour 17.2 20.3 15.2 24.2 23.1 

1–2 hours 19.8 20.2 18.8 21.7 19.5 

2–3 hours 22.2 21.2 18.4 21.6 16.6 

3–4 hours 24.5 20.6 17.7 23.4 13.8 

4–5 hours 31.7 21.1 17.0 18.1 12.2 

5 hours or more 35.8 21.1 17.3 15.0 10.8 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 40.7 26.6 15.2 11.3 6.1 

Middle two quartiles 22.3 22.6 20.2 21.0 13.8 

High quartile 7.4 9.7 16.2 32.2 34.5 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

18 
Table 1.2—Average percentile rank of 1980 high school sophomores on specified composite 

scales, by selected characteristics 

Socioeconomic Test Self- Locus of Community 

status scores concept control orientation 

Student characteristics (1980) (1982) (1982) (1982) (1982) 

Total 50.7 49.6 50.1 49.1 48.2 

Sex 

Male 52.5 50.4 50.2 48.6 50.8 

Female 48.9 48.8 50.1 49.7 45.7 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 40.3 35.1 51.1 42.0 54.3 

Asian/Pacific Islander 53.8 54.1 53.2 50.3 55.8 

Black 35.6 26.7 49.3 46.5 60.7 

White 54.4 54.7 49.3 49.5 44.2 

Hispanic-Mexican 32.2 32.8 52.1 42.5 55.9 

Hispanic-Cuban 48.3 45.7 51.4 50.3 50.6 

Hispanic-Puerto Rican 29.9 28.2 47.9 41.8 56.6 

Hispanic-other 42.4 33.0 51.5 42.9 54.4 

Family income in 1980 

Less than $8,000 24.7 31.9 53.6 44.5 54.0 

$8,000–$14,999 33.9 43.4 49.3 43.9 47.4 

$15,000–$19,999 42.0 48.9 47.5 46.1 45.8 

$20,000–$24,999 48.7 53.1 48.3 47.7 46.0 

$25,000–$29,999 54.8 55.1 47.4 50.2 43.9 

$30,000–$39,999 62.0 58.1 46.1 50.3 43.0 

$40,000–$49,999 69.1 61.2 45.1 51.6 43.1 

$50,000 or more 78.9 63.7 43.6 53.6 45.4 

Father's occupation in 1980 

Technical 69.8 57.7 45.5 49.7 45.9 

Clerical 62.2 51.1 49.8 46.6 46.4 

Craftsman 39.4 45.8 50.2 47.1 46.3 

Farmer 40.1 45.8 49.9 43.3 43.9 

Laborer 25.7 43.8 49.1 46.9 48.8 

Manager 74.6 61.5 47.2 52.8 44.8 

Military 53.0 48.1 43.5 50.2 51.5 

Operative 32.6 43.5 51.5 46.8 46.9 

Professional 78.4 63.0 47.5 55.4 45.3 

Professional/doctor 89.9 74.8 43.8 57.4 46.9 

Proprietor/owner 65.1 55.3 48.7 55.6 48.1 

Protective service 56.2 54.8 50.2 51.0 48.7 

Sales 69.9 61.1 45.4 53.0 45.0 

School teacher 81.2 66.6 43.5 59.2 46.1 

Service 31.7 44.5 50.7 49.2 52.0 

Program in high school 

General 45.4 41.7 54.1 46.1 47.9 

Academic 60.8 64.2 44.3 55.0 46.9 

Vocational 39.7 34.2 52.8 42.0 48.5 

Urbanicity of high school area 

Urban 45.8 43.3 50.9 48.4 53.4 

Suburban 55.9 53.1 49.8 50.6 47.0 

Rural 45.8 48.1 50.2 47.3 46.5 

19 
Table 1.2—Average percentile rank of 1980 high school sophomores on specified composite 

scales, by selected characteristics—Continued 

Socioeconomic Test Self- Locus of Community 

status scores concept control orientation 

Student characteristics (1980) (1982) (1982) (1982) (1982) 

Community lived in Feb. 1982 

Rural/farm 43.3 47.8 47.7 42.5 42.4 

Small city 51.6 52.2 46.0 45.2 42.6 

Medium city 52.3 49.7 44.9 43.6 43.3 

Suburb medium city 58.1 52.0 44.8 45.9 42.1 

Large city 48.8 47.2 44.3 44.1 46.4 

Suburb large city 65.4 63.3 44.5 48.3 40.2 

Huge city 49.7 50.8 40.9 45.2 49.0 

Suburb huge city 67.1 66.0 39.9 51.7 42.3 

Military base 46.4 47.0 41.6 41.5 49.7 

Religious background in 1980 

Baptist 42.3 41.7 48.2 47.2 51.6 

Methodist 56.2 54.3 47.2 51.4 46.9 

Lutheran 57.3 58.9 46.3 49.6 42.9 

Presbyterian 60.8 56.6 46.3 51.9 45.8 

Episcopalian 71.1 65.3 43.2 50.9 45.7 

Other protestant 55.1 61.6 51.2 54.3 45.7 

Catholic 53.5 54.8 49.1 49.5 45.3 

Other Christian 49.2 48.4 52.3 50.3 48.5 

Jewish 76.3 71.2 43.0 56.6 50.0 

Other religion 41.2 39.6 48.7 46.5 46.9 

None 44.2 44.9 53.4 45.4 45.1 

Political beliefs in 1980 

Conservative 56.5 56.8 44.8 51.7 49.1 

Moderate 55.5 57.8 45.5 52.4 47.6 

Liberal 56.4 59.1 47.0 53.5 48.6 

Radical 50.9 48.1 47.2 47.4 48.9 

None 45.1 43.8 53.3 45.7 45.6 

Grades in high school 

Mostly A 90–100 64.6 81.5 40.5 62.2 44.6 

Half A/B 85–89 60.6 72.1 44.0 58.7 45.3 

Mostly B 80–84 55.3 60.7 47.2 52.5 45.4 

Half B/C 75–79 49.3 46.1 50.0 48.4 47.7 

Mostly C 70–74 44.7 35.7 53.7 44.1 50.2 

Half C/D 65–69 40.5 27.3 54.4 40.8 51.0 

Mostly D 60–64 35.7 21.7 62.5 43.0 57.4 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

High school 37.4 43.7 51.5 45.6 46.9 

Vocational/technical 51.4 52.1 47.8 50.2 46.8 

Some college 68.3 59.4 47.4 53.3 46.8 

Bachelor's degree 82.2 66.2 44.3 55.7 44.5 

Advanced degree 88.0 68.1 43.1 53.6 45.9 

SOURCE: National Center for Eduction Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

20 
21 

Table 1.3—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who reported the following as their 

activities in 1992, by selected characteristics 

Vocational/ Undergraduat

Looking Taking Training technical academic 

Student characteristics Working Layoff for work break program courses courses 

Total 79.3 1.3 3.9 2.9 0.2 2.0 5.4 

Language spoken at home in 1982 

Single non-English language 78.7 0.5 5.1 4.1 0.4 2.5 5.2 

Non-English language dominant 80.0 1.3 2.3 4.0 1.2 2.2 3.5 

Combination of languages 78.9 1.1 3.9 2.7 0.4 1.9 7.8 

English is the dominant language 80.4 1.0 3.5 2.8 0.1 1.8 5.5 

Marital status in 1992 

Married 78.1 1.2 1.6 2.8 0.3 2.0 4.5 

Separated 68.6 4.0 6.4 0.6 0.0 4.8 5.0 

Divorced 79.9 1.5 6.7 1.9 0.6 2.4 7.6 

Widowed — — — — — — — Never married 81.2 1.2 6.2 3.3 0.1 1.9 6.5 

Living in a marriage-like relationship 86.8 0.5 6.5 1.6 0.0 0.7 1.0 

Before elementary school mother worked 

Did not work 80.4 1.1 3.1 3.2 0.2 1.3 5.1 

Part-time work 83.5 0.6 3.0 1.6 0.2 2.2 7.6 

Full-time work 80.8 0.9 3.8 2.9 0.3 2.7 5.8 

In elementary school mother worked 

Did not work 80.4 1.0 2.9 3.1 0.2 1.2 5.3 

Part-time work 82.3 1.1 3.5 2.7 0.2 1.7 5.7 

Full-time work 79.8 0.9 3.6 2.8 0.2 2.6 6.1 

In high school mother worked 

Did not work 79.3 1.0 3.1 3.2 0.3 1.3 5.4 

Part-time work 80.9 1.0 4.0 2.8 0.0 1.6 5.4 

Full-time work 81.1 0.9 3.3 2.5 0.3 2.3 6.0 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 77.0 1.6 7.1 2.2 0.0 1.2 4.7 

Asian/Pacific Islander 75.7 0.3 3.1 7.3 0.8 2.0 5.4 

Black 73.3 1.2 7.6 3.9 0.7 2.4 6.0 

Hispanic 77.4 1.8 4.6 2.5 0.2 2.0 5.3 

White 80.6 1.2 3.0 2.8 0.2 1.9 5.5 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. NOTES: Activities reported for week prior to survey in 1992. The percentage of students who reported working or looking for work differs from timing (table 3.1.A refers to February 1992) and patterns of missing data. Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 
22 

Table 1.4—Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores who reported spending time in various unpaid a

selected characteristics 

Church Education Organized Political Service Sports U

Student characteristics groups groups volunteer groups clubs groups p

Total 11.1 5.7 4.3 1.1 4.0 2.6 

Sex 

Male 9.5 3.1 3.5 1.1 4.4 3.4 

Female 12.7 8.1 5.0 1.2 3.7 1.8 

Marital and parental status in 1992 

Married no children 12.0 4.0 3.9 1.5 5.1 2.6 

Married with children 14.9 7.7 3.6 0.6 3.1 2.5 

Divorced/sep/widow no children 7.4 2.1 7.6 0.2 3.7 0.7 

Divorced/sep/widow with children 8.1 7.9 3.3 0.7 2.8 3.0 

Never married no children 7.6 3.8 5.5 1.8 4.9 3.0 

Never married with children 9.0 7.4 3.1 1.3 3.6 1.9 

Living together no children 1.2 0.1 3.4 0.0 0.0 3.4 

Living together with children 11.3 5.4 0.0 0.0 2.3 7.1 

Highest degree earned by 1992 

Less than high school 6.0 5.4 1.4 0.9 2.5 4.4 

High school 9.8 5.5 3.2 0.8 3.5 2.2 

Certificate 13.0 5.5 5.0 1.0 3.1 2.3 

Associate’s 13.3 4.5 6.2 1.0 3.1 1.8 

Bachelor’s 14.1 5.5 6.4 2.1 5.7 3.1 

Master's 12.5 13.9 7.0 2.8 9.2 4.4 

Professional 9.7 7.3 4.6 3.3 8.1 3.9 

Doctorate — — — — — — 

Locus of control (1982) 

Low quartile 8.7 5.2 3.6 0.8 3.5 2.3 Middle two quartiles 12.1 5.6 4.5 1.2 4.2 2.6 

High quartile 11.6 6.2 4.5 1.5 4.2 2.9 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. NOTE: The activity categories are not exclusive. SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 
Section 2 

Educational Experiences 

of the 1980 Sophomore Class 

Differences in Attainment 

Educational expectations in high school were clearly related to educational attainment 10 

years later, but sophomores' expectations may be set well before they get to high school. 

Differences in attainment were related to expectations that were set as early as the sixth 

grade. A greater percentage of those who had decided to attend college in sixth grade 

enrolled in a 4-year institution after high school than of those who had decided against 

college, were not sure, or had not thought about it (table 2.1). 

Females were more likely to enroll immediately in either a 4- or 2-year college, and were 

more likely to have enrolled in some type of postsecondary institution before 1992 than 

were males (table 2.3). However, males and females were equally likely to have attained 

a bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree by 1992. Males were more likely than females to 

have earned a professional degree (table 2.4.A). 

Nearly three out of four 1980 high school sophomores in the lowest SES quartile had no 

postsecondary degrees by 1992, and this group was significantly less likely to graduate 

from high school or to attain a bachelor's degree or higher than 1980 sophomores in the 

middle two and upper SES quartiles. Those in the middle two SES quartiles were less 

likely to attain a bachelor's degree or higher than those in the highest quartile (table 

2.4.A). 

The same patterns of attainment that were apparent by SES appear when the sample is 

divided by test score quartiles.11 Those in the lowest quartile were less likely to finish 

high school or attain a degree beyond high school than those in the middle two or 

highest. Respondents in the highest quartile were more likely to have earned bachelor's 

degrees or higher than those in the middle two quartiles (table 2.4.A). 

The timing of 1980 sophomores' entry into postsecondary education was significantly 

related to their levels of educational attainment. Those who entered a postsecondary 

institution after October 1982 were more likely to have attained only a high school 

diploma or vocational certificate by 1992 than were those who entered immediately; 

however, those who entered immediately were more likely to have attained a bachelor's or 

advanced degree by 1992 (tables 2.4.B & 2.4.C). 

11The similarity of the relationship between attainment and SES and attainment and test scores is due to the high 

correlation between SES and test scores. The Pearson correlation between these two variables is 0.775. 

23 
The intensity of initial attendance at a postsecondary institution was related to degree 

attainment. Respondents who attended either a 4-year or public 2-year school immediately 

after high school were more likely to attain bachelor's degrees if they enrolled full time 

than if they enrolled part time. By contrast, those who enrolled part time were more likely 

to have no credential beyond a high school diploma than those who enrolled full time 

(table 2.4.A). 

Graduate School Admissions 

While about two-thirds (68 percent) of bachelor's degree recipients took graduate or 

professional admissions exams, fewer than half (31 percent) actually applied to a graduate 

or professional institution. The small number of respondents who applied to graduate 

schools and the large number who were accepted at the school of their choice implies a 

strong degree of self-selection throughout the graduate school application process (table 

2.9). 

Bachelor's degree recipients who borrowed money for their undergraduate education were 

three times as likely to take graduate or professional admissions exams as were those who 

had not borrowed. However, those who had borrowed money applied to graduate school 

at only one-third the rate of those who had not borrowed. Of those who applied, those 

who borrowed money and those who did not were equally likely to be accepted at their 

first-choice institution. Among those who borrowed, the amount borrowed did not affect 

the rate of participation in graduate admissions tests, the application rate, or the rate of 

acceptance into a graduate program (table 2.9). 

24 
25 

Table 2.1—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by type of postsecondary institution 

enrolled, by selected characteristics 

Private not- Public 

Never Private for-profit less- less-than- Public Pu

Student characteristics enrolled for-profit than-4-year 2-year 2-year 4-

Total 33.6 6.1 1.4 3.5 26.7 19

College expectations in sixth grade 

Decided to go 16.6 4.9 1.5 2.8 25.8 32

Planned not to go 52.3 7.2 1.4 4.2 24.3 7

Not sure 34.3 6.8 1.7 3.8 29.0 17

Hadn't thought about it 28.5 6.5 1.5 4.8 30.6 19

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 73.1 4.5 0.5 2.7 15.6 2

Vocational/technical 41.1 14.0 2.0 7.2 29.5 4

Less-than-4-year degree 21.4 6.2 2.3 2.2 45.3 16

College degree 8.0 2.8 1.2 2.8 26.7 40

Advanced degree 6.6 1.8 1.4 2.7 20.6 42

First institution start date 

Never enrolled 100.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0

Before November 1982 0.0 5.5 2.2 3.8 33.0 37

Nov. 1982–May 1983 0.0 17.6 1.6 8.2 54.6 1

June 1983–May 1984 0.0 14.8 3.3 7.3 47.9 19

June 1984–May 1986 0.0 21.8 2.4 10.7 46.6 13

June 1986 or later 0.0 18.3 1.7 8.8 53.9 12

Number of applications to college in 1982 

Did not apply 53.6 7.5 0.9 4.4 25.9 5

1 college 8.9 5.2 1.7 2.6 32.7 37

2–3 colleges 4.7 3.0 2.4 3.1 22.2 42

4 or more colleges 4.1 1.6 1.5 1.6 11.2 37

Accepted at 1982 first-choice college 

No applications 59.8 6.7 0.8 3.5 24.1 3

Attended first choice 0.0 5.6 2.5 3.5 29.8 40

Accepted but did not attend 21.4 5.9 1.1 4.5 36.4 2

Was not accepted at first choice 11.3 4.5 1.5 2.6 25.8 28

NOTES: Institution types are defined by degree offerings (less-than-2-year, 2- to 3-year, 4-year or more) and control (public, private profit). Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 
26 

Table 2.2—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by the timing of their first postseco

selected characteristics 

November June June June June June June 

Before 1982– 1983– 1984– 1985– 1986– 1987– 1988– 1

Never November May May May May May May May 

Student characteristics enrolled 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 

Total 35.5 44.1 3.5 6.5 2.7 2.4 1.3 1.1 0.9 

College expectations 

in sixth grade 

Decided to go 18.0 64.4 3.4 6.1 2.1 2.3 1.2 0.7 0.8 

Planned not to go 54.4 24.6 3.3 6.4 2.6 2.6 1.4 1.4 0.9 

Not sure 35.9 43.7 4.3 6.5 2.6 2.0 1.5 1.0 0.4 

Hadn't thought about it 30.6 46.3 4.2 6.4 3.7 2.8 1.4 1.1 1.3 

Postsecondary expectations 

in 1982 

None 75.7 4.7 1.8 4.5 2.5 3.0 1.5 1.6 1.3 

Vocational/technical 43.6 27.1 5.5 8.7 4.2 3.6 1.8 1.6 1.6 

Less-than-4-year degree 23.5 51.8 5.2 8.8 2.9 2.9 1.3 1.0 0.6 

College degree 9.0 76.7 3.1 5.0 2.2 1.4 1.3 0.4 0.6 

Advanced degree 7.3 80.4 2.5 5.5 1.5 1.2 0.4 0.4 0.2 

First postsecondary institution 

type 

Never enrolled 100.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 

Private for-profit 0.0 39.6 10.1 15.8 10.7 7.8 3.6 4.1 1.1 

Private not-for-profit 

less-than-4-year 0.0 66.2 3.8 15.0 5.9 2.7 0.3 0.3 2.4 

Public less-than-2-year 0.0 48.5 8.3 13.6 8.8 7.2 4.7 2.6 0.7 

Public 2-year 0.0 58.6 7.7 12.5 4.5 5.2 2.4 2.2 2.5 

Public 4-year 0.0 84.5 2.2 6.4 2.2 1.3 1.2 0.5 0.8 

Private not-for-profit 4-year 0.0 86.9 2.3 5.3 1.7 1.2 0.9 0.7 0.3 

Number of applications to 

college in 1982 

Did not apply 56.3 17.9 3.7 7.8 3.4 3.5 1.8 1.6 1.3 

1 college 9.9 77.0 3.8 4.6 1.6 1.1 0.6 0.3 0.3 

2–3 colleges 5.6 82.7 2.8 3.9 2.3 1.0 0.7 0.2 0.5 

4 or more colleges 5.0 89.9 0.7 3.2 0.3 0.8 0.0 0.1 0.0 
Table 2.2—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by the timing of their first postseco

selected characteristics—Continued 

November June June June June June June 

Before 1982– 1983– 1984– 1985– 1986– 1987– 1988– 1

Never November May May May May May May May 

Student characteristics enrolled 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 Accepted at 1982 first choice 

college 

No applications 62.4 10.2 3.3 7.1 4.0 4.1 2.1 1.9 1.7 Attended first choice 0.0 89.7 3.8 5.0 0.8 0.3 0.2 0.1 0.0 Accepted but did not attend 23.3 51.0 5.3 8.2 4.3 2.3 1.8 1.2 1.0 Was not accepted at first 

choice 12.8 73.1 2.7 7.1 1.9 1.0 0.4 0.1 0.4 

NOTES: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. The percentage of students in the “never enrolled” category doeother tables due to a different pattern of missing data in the variables used to specify the timing of first enrollment. SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

27 
28 

Table 2.3—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by the timing, intensity, and institu

enrollment in postsecondary education, by selected characteristics 

Fall 1982 Fall 1982 Fall 1982 Fall 1982 

full-time full-time part-time part-time Fall 1982 Delay Delay Delay 

Student characteristics 4-year public 2-year 4-year public 2-year other 4-year public 2-year other 

Total 23.4 10.5 1.1 4.1 5.0 4.2 10.3 5.9 

Sex 

Male 22.0 9.3 1.0 3.4 4.3 4.7 10.3 5.0 

Female 24.8 11.6 1.2 4.8 5.8 3.8 10.2 6.8 

High school diploma status in 1982 

Regular diploma 28.2 12.2 1.3 4.6 5.8 4.5 10.1 5.3 

Returned for diploma 1.9 6.1 0.8 4.9 3.0 3.8 17.6 11.3 

Returned but no diploma 0.0 3.0 0.1 0.9 1.1 4.1 7.9 15.6 

Never returned 1.0 1.3 0.0 0.4 0.9 1.5 7.3 6.5 

Postsecondary expectations 1982 

None 0.7 1.3 0.1 1.2 1.4 2.9 10.5 6.3 

Vocational/technical 1.9 9.1 0.5 4.1 11.6 3.9 14.0 11.5 

Less-than-4-year degree 15.8 21.3 1.7 7.1 5.9 5.0 14.9 4.8 

College degree 51.3 14.1 1.9 5.5 3.9 5.4 6.1 2.9 

Advanced degree 60.1 11.0 1.8 3.8 3.7 5.0 5.1 2.2 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 8.7 7.9 0.6 2.3 4.3 4.0 9.3 8.3 

Middle two quartiles 21.5 11.9 1.4 5.2 6.1 4.1 11.8 5.7 

High quartile 48.4 12.3 1.3 4.9 5.1 5.4 6.6 3.0 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 5.2 5.6 0.2 2.8 3.9 3.1 9.5 8.1 

Middle two quartiles 17.7 13.6 1.4 5.1 6.2 4.4 11.9 6.4 

High quartile 60.4 10.0 1.8 3.2 4.3 4.7 6.2 2.5 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 8.4 6.1 0.2 2.8 3.0 9.2 16.6 5.2 

Asian/Pacific Islander 40.6 16.1 2.1 7.0 2.8 3.7 11.1 3.3 

Black 18.9 8.8 0.7 2.8 4.3 5.1 9.7 8.6 

Hispanic 11.1 9.5 1.4 3.8 4.6 3.8 10.7 6.1 

White 25.6 11.0 1.1 4.4 5.3 4.1 10.1 5.5 
Table 2.3—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by the timing, intensity, and institu

enrollment in postsecondary education, by selected characteristics—Continued 

Fall 1982 Fall 1982 Fall 1982 Fall 1982 

full-time full-time part-time part-time Fall 1982 Delay Delay Delay 

Student characteristics 4-year public 2-year 4-year public 2-year other 4-year public 2-year other Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

No high school diploma 12.9 9.8 1.0 3.3 5.3 3.8 11.6 7.2 High school graduate 18.9 8.1 0.7 4.3 5.7 3.7 16.0 8.4 Vocational/technical 22.9 12.5 1.3 4.5 6.2 3.9 11.5 7.4 Some college 35.5 14.1 1.3 6.2 4.8 5.5 9.2 4.3 Bachelor's degree 50.6 13.0 1.6 4.9 3.6 3.7 6.6 3.0 Advanced degree 52.9 7.5 1.0 3.3 5.7 7.2 6.8 2.8 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

29 
30 

Table 2.4.A—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree earned through 

characteristics 

Less than High 

Student characteristics high school school Certificate Associate's Bachelor's Master's P

Total 5.8 51.5 11.0 7.9 20.0 2.7 

Sex 

Male 6.5 53.5 9.7 6.7 19.5 2.6 

Female 5.0 49.5 12.4 9.1 20.5 2.8 

High school diploma status in 1982 

Regular diploma 0.3 51.9 10.8 8.7 23.9 3.2 

Returned for diploma 6.8 68.3 14.4 7.0 3.4 0.1 

Returned but no diploma 27.1 47.7 19.9 3.4 1.9 0.0 

Never returned 51.5 35.7 9.5 2.1 0.9 0.3 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 15.5 71.1 9.3 3.0 1.0 0.1 

Vocational/technical 4.6 61.6 19.8 10.7 3.3 0.1 

Less-than-4-year degree 1.6 53.2 13.3 15.6 15.0 1.1 

College degree 0.9 35.3 6.8 6.3 44.9 5.0 

Advanced degree 0.8 28.9 5.2 5.7 45.1 9.0 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 9.0 64.6 12.3 6.9 6.4 0.7 

Middle two quartiles 3.9 53.8 11.5 9.1 19.0 2.0 

High quartile 1.4 32.7 7.0 7.6 41.2 6.9 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 15.6 64.0 13.0 4.1 3.0 0.2 

Middle two quartiles 3.1 56.2 12.8 10.1 16.1 1.5 

High quartile 0.1 26.5 4.8 7.2 49.2 8.7 

Type of start in postsecondary education 

Fall 1982 full-time 4-year 0.0 21.2 3.5 4.6 57.8 9.0 

Fall 1982 full-time public 2-year 0.3 36.5 11.9 24.4 24.6 2.1 

Fall 1982 part-time 4-year 0.0 52.2 6.7 10.0 27.2 3.5 Fall 1982 part-time public 2-year 1.6 59.5 13.4 9.4 14.4 0.9 Fall 1982 other 0.2 23.0 34.3 24.5 15.7 1.9 

Delay 4-year 0.4 55.6 8.1 7.4 24.0 3.7 

Delay public 2-year 1.7 63.0 16.9 12.0 6.2 0.2 Delay other 1.9 31.4 48.4 14.4 3.8 0.1 Other enrollment 0.0 0.0 86.5 5.1 6.0 1.1 

No enrollment 16.1 83.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
Table 2.4.A—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree earned through 

characteristics—Continued 

Less than High 

Student characteristics high school school Certificate Associate's Bachelor's Master's P

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 17.8 58.2 11.8 5.0 6.7 0.5 

Asian/Pacific Islander 0.6 40.9 6.9 6.2 32.7 4.7 

Black 6.9 59.6 16.3 5.2 10.0 1.5 Hispanic 11.9 59.6 11.2 7.3 9.0 0.6 

White 4.9 49.1 10.1 8.4 23.1 3.2 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

No high school diploma 6.5 59.8 12.8 8.6 10.8 1.2 

High school graduate 5.2 59.1 12.4 6.0 16.6 0.3 

Vocational/technical 3.0 49.2 15.4 10.2 19.1 2.4 

Some college 2.1 43.7 8.4 8.4 32.0 4.3 

Bachelor's degree 1.4 32.6 4.9 8.1 42.4 6.9 

Advanced degree 3.5 23.9 8.6 4.9 44.1 10.0 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

31 
Table 2.4.B—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who enrolled in 

postsecondary education immediately after high school by highest degree 

attained through 1992, by selected characteristics 

High Advanced 

Student characteristics school Certificate Associate's Bachelor's degree 

Total 29.6 10.0 12.2 40.3 7.9 

Sex 

Male 29.5 8.6 10.1 42.3 9.5 

Female 29.7 11.1 13.9 38.7 6.7 

High school diploma status in 1982 

Regular diploma 29.0 9.6 11.9 41.3 8.2 

Returned for diploma 51.0 20.4 20.3 7.6 0.7 

Returned but no diploma — — — — — 

Never returned 45.0 25.4 13.1 16.5 0.0 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 49.0 29.1 15.3 6.5 0.0 

Vocational/technical 39.2 29.9 23.5 7.1 0.3 

Less-than-4-year degree 36.7 13.3 23.9 23.9 2.2 

College degree 26.6 5.2 6.6 54.3 7.4 

Advanced degree 22.3 3.6 5.4 52.0 16.7 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 38.5 18.1 18.2 22.0 3.2 

Middle two quartiles 33.2 11.0 14.1 36.4 5.4 

High quartile 21.9 5.0 7.6 52.5 13.1 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 48.5 23.4 13.7 13.3 1.1 

Middle two quartiles 35.5 12.5 16.1 32.1 3.9 

High quartile 17.9 2.9 7.1 57.2 14.9 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 38.0 23.1 10.1 26.3 2.6 

Asian/Pacific Islander 23.6 5.9 6.5 45.3 18.6 

Black 43.8 19.4 8.6 23.3 4.9 

Hispanic-Mexican 43.1 11.4 16.0 26.5 2.9 

White 27.0 8.7 12.4 43.5 8.5 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

No high school diploma 35.5 13.3 18.1 28.6 4.4 

High school graduate 36.1 13.9 7.5 40.9 1.6 

Vocational/technical 30.3 12.0 14.4 37.0 6.3 

Some college 27.8 7.5 9.8 46.5 8.4 

Bachelor's degree 22.2 2.7 8.5 53.7 12.9 

Advanced degree 15.4 6.8 5.2 53.0 19.6 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTES: Students who enrolled in postsecondary education before November 1982 were defined as immediate entrants. 

Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

32 
Table 2.4.C—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who delayed entry 

into postsecondary education by highest degree attained through 1992, by 

selected characteristics 

High Advanced 

Student characteristics school Certificate Associate's Bachelor's degree 

Total 53.8 24.2 11.8 9.2 1.1 

Sex 

Male 53.1 22.7 12.4 10.8 1.0 

Female 54.4 25.6 11.2 7.7 1.2 

High school diploma status in 1982 

Regular diploma 54.2 22.4 12.0 10.5 0.9 

Diploma returned 54.8 28.3 10.8 5.8 0.3 

Returned no diploma 42.9 40.8 9.3 7.0 0.0 

Had not returned 51.9 35.7 9.5 1.2 1.7 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 57.9 27.4 11.2 3.0 0.6 

Vocational/technical 50.3 32.0 13.8 3.9 0.0 

Less-than-4-year degree 57.9 18.5 12.4 10.5 0.8 

College degree 54.6 15.5 8.8 20.0 1.2 

Advanced degree 43.7 16.6 10.3 23.8 5.6 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 57.3 25.8 11.5 5.3 0.1 

Middle two quartiles 54.4 24.5 11.8 8.7 0.7 

High quartile 45.5 16.7 14.3 19.9 3.7 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 61.0 28.4 7.8 2.8 0.0 

Middle two quartiles 53.2 25.7 12.7 7.9 0.6 

High quartile 44.6 17.2 10.7 24.5 3.0 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 72.2 15.0 8.8 4.0 0.0 

Asian/Pacific Islander 72.1 11.5 9.2 7.3 0.0 

Black 54.8 29.7 8.3 6.6 0.6 

Hispanic 57.6 27.9 10.4 3.9 0.2 

White 52.6 23.1 12.3 10.7 1.4 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

No high school diploma 54.3 28.0 11.3 6.0 0.3 

High school graduate 64.1 20.5 11.0 4.4 0.0 

Vocational/technical 46.8 33.1 14.0 5.8 0.4 

Some college 56.4 15.6 11.9 15.1 1.0 

Bachelor's degree 46.1 15.2 14.3 17.3 7.1 

Advanced degree 29.7 19.9 7.4 35.9 7.1 

NOTES: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. Students who enrolled in postsecondary education 

after November 1982 were defined as delayed entrants. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

33 
Table 2.5—Average length of initial delay in months prior to entry into postsecondary 

education among 1980 high school sophomores, by highest degree attained 

through 1992 and selected characteristics 

High Advanced Average, 

school Certificate Associate's Bachelor's degree all degrees 

Total 19.0 22.8 12.5 5.6 5.0 14.0 

Sex 

Male 20.2 25.6 13.8 6.2 4.8 14.9 

Female 18.0 20.7 11.6 5.0 5.2 13.3 

High school diploma status in 1982 

Regular diploma 17.9 21.3 11.3 5.5 4.8 12.9 

Diploma returned 30.3 37.8 29.4 — — 30.9 

Returned no diploma — — — — — 21.9 

Had not returned 24.2 32.9 — — — 26.2 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 38.4 39.2 32.2 — — 37.6 

Vocational/technical 22.5 23.1 14.4 11.9 — 20.6 

Less-than-4-year degree 17.4 16.1 8.2 6.7 5.9 13.2 

College degree 12.1 17.6 9.0 4.7 4.4 8.2 

Advanced degree 9.6 8.7 10.7 5.1 4.9 6.7 

Type of start in postsecondary education 

Full-time fall 1982 4-year 4.0 3.9 4.0 4.0 3.9 4.0 

Full-time fall 1982 public 2-year 4.0 4.5 4.0 3.9 3.4 4.0 

Part-time fall 1982 4-year 4.6 — — 3.5 — 4.1 

Part-time fall 1982 public 2-year 4.1 13.7 4.2 3.9 — 5.2 

Delay 4-year 33.3 28.9 29.5 19.4 — 28.9 

Delay public 2-year 36.6 30.8 30.6 20.6 — 33.9 

Fall 1982 other 4.0 3.8 3.6 4.2 — 3.9 

Delay other 25.4 35.0 32.9 — — 30.9 

Other — 44.2 — — — 41.0 

Socioeconomic status 

Low quartile 23.8 29.2 15.2 7.8 — 21.5 

Middle two quartiles 19.9 20.2 11.6 5.7 4.5 14.4 

High quartile 11.9 15.2 9.5 4.9 4.9 7.9 

Test score composite in 1982 

Low quartile 24.7 31.5 17.1 8.3 — 24.6 

Middle two quartiles 17.9 19.8 11.3 6.1 4.9 14.2 

High quartile 12.7 16.7 7.7 4.9 4.3 7.3 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 31.2 23.0 — — — 25.7 

Asian/Pacific Islander 11.9 — — 4.3 3.8 8.3 

Black 20.7 20.8 14.1 6.3 7.6 17.4 

Hispanic 20.1 28.2 13.0 5.8 4.1 17.8 

White 18.5 22.9 11.8 5.5 4.9 13.1 

Parents educational attainment by 1980 

No high school diploma 22.4 28.3 13.3 6.4 4.4 18.9 

High school graduate 22.3 23.5 16.3 5.4 — 17.8 

Vocational/technical 19.7 20.4 12.0 5.1 4.2 14.2 

Some college 15.0 15.5 12.3 5.4 4.6 10.3 

Bachelor's degree 9.1 18.7 6.9 4.8 5.3 7.0 

Advanced degree 10.9 16.7 6.3 5.8 5.1 7.6 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

34 
Table 2.6.A—Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores attaining degrees and average 

number of months between first enrollment and attainment of degrees, by 

type of degree and selected characteristics 

Percentage Average Percentage Average Percentage Average 

who attained months to who attained months to who attained months to 

Student characteristics certificate certificate associate's associate's bachelor's bachelor's 

Total 12.1 29.7 9.4 36.8 22.4 55.7 

Sex 

Male 10.3 30.3 8.2 37.7 22.2 56.4 

Female 13.8 29.3 10.6 36.1 22.6 55.1 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 8.5 18.6 3.1 30.8 0.9 — 

Vocational/technical 20.3 20.0 10.6 30.0 3.0 61.0 

Less-than-4-year degree 14.4 36.4 17.4 36.3 15.4 61.6 

College degree 8.9 44.2 10.2 39.8 48.9 55.8 

Advanced degree 7.8 44.8 8.8 43.6 56.9 53.6 

Type of start in postsecondary 

education 

Full-time fall 1982 4-year 6.4 57.2 6.0 47.0 68.6 53.1 

Full-time fall 1982 public 2-year 15.0 43.4 34.4 34.6 25.5 66.5 

Part-time fall 1982 4-year 8.8 — 11.8 — 30.7 71.2 

Part-time fall 1982 public 2-year 14.6 37.7 9.6 55.7 14.9 67.7 

Delay 4-year 9.7 36.5 7.2 41.1 26.4 49.0 

Delay public 2-year 18.1 32.6 13.1 38.1 5.8 66.9 

Fall 1982 other 35.5 19.5 27.0 27.8 16.9 58.5 

Delay other 47.9 16.5 14.8 28.7 3.9 — 

Other 85.0 15.1 5.0 — 5.6 — 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 12.8 23.9 7.0 36.9 6.6 55.9 

Middle two quartiles 12.5 29.9 11.2 34.9 20.3 56.8 

High quartile 9.3 38.0 10.4 38.9 49.2 54.4 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 13.0 24.1 4.0 29.8 2.8 62.8 

Middle two quartiles 14.1 29.3 12.0 35.9 17.1 57.9 

High quartile 6.8 45.8 10.0 39.9 59.0 53.6 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 12.2 33.0 5.2 — 6.4 — 

Asian/Pacific Islander 7.4 — 8.1 40.5 42.5 59.0 

Black 17.0 31.5 5.2 40.2 11.1 57.3 

Hispanic 12.2 28.7 7.9 45.3 9.3 60.0 

White 11.1 29.5 10.4 35.3 25.9 55.3 

Parents' educational attainment 

in 1980 

No high school diploma 12.8 24.3 9.3 33.0 11.2 57.2 

High school graduate 12.7 29.3 6.6 36.2 16.4 53.1 

Vocational/technical 16.6 29.6 12.1 34.7 21.5 57.8 

Some college 10.3 34.0 11.6 42.0 35.5 56.1 

Bachelor's degree 7.0 45.5 11.7 36.4 50.5 54.9 

Advanced degree 11.5 46.9 6.0 35.5 57.3 52.5 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: The percentage of students at each attainment level does not necessarily match the percentage distributions by 

highest degree because students can have earned degrees other than their highest degree. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

35 
Table 2.6.B—Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores who entered postsecondary 

education before November 1982 attaining degrees and average number of 

months between first enrollment and attainment of degrees, by type of degree 

and selected characteristics 

Percentage Average Percentage Average Percentage Average 

who attained months to who attained months to who attained months to 

Student characteristics certificate certificate associate's associate's bachelor's bachelor's 

Total 12.6 38.9 15.6 37.4 46.5 55.8 

Sex 

Male 10.5 42.9 13.7 38.1 50.0 56.7 

Female 14.2 36.4 17.2 36.9 43.6 55.0 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 28.1 28.0 15.6 — 6.1 — 

Vocational/technical 33.4 23.6 24.3 28.3 7.0 68.3 

Less-than-4-year degree 15.2 41.2 27.1 36.7 24.8 62.1 

College degree 7.8 50.2 11.3 40.4 59.8 55.5 

Advanced degree 6.4 54.6 9.1 44.1 66.5 53.9 

Type of start in postsecondary 

education 

Full-time fall 1982 4-year 6.4 57.2 6.0 47.0 68.6 53.1 

Full-time fall 1982 public 2-year 15.0 43.4 34.4 34.6 25.5 66.5 

Part-time fall 1982 4-year 8.8 — 11.8 — 30.7 71.2 

Part-time fall 1982 public 2-year 14.6 37.7 9.6 55.7 14.9 67.7 

Fall 1982 other 35.5 19.5 27.0 27.8 16.9 58.5 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 20.6 34.0 18.6 36.8 23.9 57.0 

Middle two quartiles 13.1 38.5 18.6 35.3 40.0 56.8 

High quartile 8.2 44.9 11.2 40.8 63.5 54.7 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 26.3 32.8 14.1 30.1 13.2 63.9 

Middle two quartiles 15.6 37.1 20.4 36.6 34.8 58.5 

High quartile 5.2 52.3 10.4 40.2 69.8 53.5 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 24.3 — 15.0 — 25.9 — 

Asian/Pacific Islander 7.2 — 8.8 38.3 60.7 58.2 

Black 22.1 42.7 9.0 43.2 26.9 59.0 

Hispanic 15.9 41.6 18.0 46.1 28.5 60.4 

White 11.1 38.1 16.5 36.2 50.1 55.3 

Parents' educational attainment by 1980 

No high school diploma 15.3 33.7 20.5 34.0 30.8 57.6 

High school graduate 15.0 36.8 9.6 33.0 41.0 53.3 

Vocational/technical 14.9 38.2 19.0 34.5 42.5 57.9 

Some college 10.4 42.6 14.6 43.0 52.9 56.1 

Bachelor's degree 5.7 55.3 12.9 38.4 64.4 54.8 

Advanced degree 9.1 47.7 5.8 36.1 71.0 52.2 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: The percentage of students at each attainment level does not necessarily match the percentage distributions by 

highest degree because students can have earned degrees other than their highest degree. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

36 
Table 2.6.C—Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores who entered postsecondary 

education after October 1982 attaining degrees and average number of 

months between first enrollment and attainment of degrees, by type of degree 

and selected characteristics 

Percentage Average Percentage Average Percentage Average 

who attained months to who attained months to who attained months to 

Student characteristics certificate certificate associate's associate's bachelor's bachelor's 

Total 25.0 24.0 12.4 35.2 9.5 54.3 

Sex 

Male 23.5 22.9 13.3 37.1 11.0 52.3 

Female 26.4 24.9 11.5 33.1 8.0 56.9 

Postsecondary expectations 1982 

None 25.9 17.5 11.9 29.1 2.6 — 

Vocational/technical 31.8 18.4 13.5 32.8 3.9 — 

Less-than-4-year degree 20.5 36.2 13.3 34.1 10.7 59.7 

College degree 16.5 35.6 10.6 37.2 20.1 59.2 

Advanced degree 19.4 24.8 11.2 41.4 27.6 48.2 

Type of start in postsecondary 

education 

Delay 4-year 9.7 36.5 7.2 41.1 26.4 49.0 

Delay public 2-year 18.1 32.6 13.1 38.1 5.8 66.9 

Delay other 47.9 16.5 14.8 28.7 3.9 — 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 26.8 19.6 12.2 36.4 4.9 49.7 

Middle two quartiles 24.6 23.1 11.9 33.7 8.6 56.5 

High quartile 17.2 28.3 15.4 32.2 21.9 50.9 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 28.6 22.1 7.3 29.4 2.4 — 

Middle two quartiles 26.3 22.9 13.3 33.9 8.0 53.4 

High quartile 18.8 36.3 12.7 38.3 25.1 55.8 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 15.7 — 6.7 — 3.4 — 

Asian/Pacific Islander 11.5 — 11.5 — 7.3 — 

Black 30.7 25.1 8.1 36.4 6.9 47.8 

Hispanic 27.2 23.8 10.6 41.7 3.1 55.9 

White 23.6 23.0 13.2 32.5 11.1 54.6 

Parents' educational attainment 1980 

No high school diploma 27.1 19.7 11.9 30.8 5.9 53.4 

High school graduate 20.1 22.0 10.7 — 4.4 — 

Vocational/technical 34.5 24.7 13.3 35.6 5.9 57.0 

Some college 16.2 21.9 13.4 38.9 14.5 54.5 

Bachelor's degree 15.7 — 15.8 — 21.0 53.3 

Advanced degree 27.8 — 11.6 — 41.7 55.7 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: The percentage of students at each attainment level does not necessarily match the percentage distributions by 

highest degree because students can have earned degrees other than their highest degree. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

37 
Table 2.7.A—Average number of postsecondary institutions attended prior to degree 

attainment by 1980 high school sophomores, by type of degree and selected 

characteristics 

Student characteristics Certificate Associate's Bachelor's 

Total 1.5 1.5 1.7 

Sex 

Male 1.5 1.5 1.7 

Female 1.5 1.5 1.8 

Postsecondary expectations 1982 

None 1.2 1.2 1.8 

Vocational/technical 1.2 1.3 1.9 

Less-than-4-year degree 1.6 1.4 1.9 

College degree 2.0 1.7 1.7 

Advanced degree 2.1 1.7 1.7 

Type of start in postsecondary education 

Full-time fall 1982 4-year 2.4 2.1 1.6 

Full-time fall 1982 public 2-year 1.8 1.3 2.3 

Part-time fall 1982 4-year — — 2.3 

Part-time fall 1982 public 2-year 1.8 1.6 2.5 

Delay 4-year 1.9 1.6 1.5 

Delay public 2-year 1.6 1.4 2.3 

Fall 1982 other 1.2 1.4 2.1 

Delay other 1.2 1.3 — 

Other 1.1 — — 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 1.3 1.4 1.6 

Middle two quartiles 1.5 1.4 1.7 

High quartile 1.8 1.6 1.8 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 1.4 1.3 1.7 

Middle two quartiles 1.5 1.4 1.8 

High quartile 1.9 1.7 1.7 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 1.4 — — 

Asian/Pacific Islander 1.6 1.7 1.9 

Black 1.6 1.5 1.6 

Hispanic 1.6 1.6 1.8 

White 1.5 1.5 1.8 

Parents' educational attainment 1980 

No high school diploma 1.4 1.3 1.7 

High school graduate 1.5 1.1 1.6 

Vocational/technical 1.5 1.5 1.8 

Some college 1.7 1.6 1.8 

Bachelor's degree 2.0 1.6 1.9 

Advanced degree 1.9 1.6 1.7 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

38 
Table 2.7.B—Average number of postsecondary institutions attended prior to degree 

attainment by 1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled before 

November 1982, by type of degree and selected characteristics 

Student characteristics Certificate Associate's Bachelor's 

Total 1.7 1.5 1.7 

Sex 

Male 1.7 1.6 1.7 

Female 1.7 1.5 1.8 

Postsecondary expectations 1982 

None 1.3 — — 

Vocational/technical 1.3 1.3 2.0 

Less-than-4-year degree 1.7 1.5 1.9 

College degree 2.2 1.7 1.7 

Advanced degree 2.4 1.7 1.8 

Type of start in postsecondary education 

Full-time fall 1982 4-year 2.4 2.1 1.6 

Full-time fall 1982 public 2-year 1.8 1.3 2.3 

Part-time fall 1982 4-year — — 2.3 

Part-time fall 1982 public 2-year 1.8 1.6 2.5 

Fall 1982 other 1.2 1.4 2.1 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 1.5 1.5 1.6 

Middle two quartiles 1.6 1.5 1.7 

High quartile 2.1 1.7 1.8 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 1.5 1.4 1.7 

Middle two quartiles 1.7 1.5 1.8 

High quartile 2.1 1.7 1.7 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native — — — 

Asian/Pacific Islander — 1.7 1.9 

Black 1.8 1.6 1.6 

Hispanic 2.0 1.7 1.8 

White 1.7 1.5 1.7 

Parents' educational attainment 1980 

No high school diploma 1.6 1.4 1.7 

High school graduate 1.7 1.2 1.5 

Vocational/technical 1.7 1.5 1.8 

Some college 1.9 1.7 1.8 

Bachelor's degree 2.4 1.7 1.9 

Advanced degree 2.0 1.6 1.7 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

39 
Table 2.7.C—Average number of postsecondary institutions attended prior to degree 

attainment by 1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled after October 

1982, by type of degree and selected characteristics 

Student characteristics Certificate Associate's Bachelor's 

Total 1.4 1.4 1.8 

Sex 

Male 1.4 1.4 1.8 

Female 1.4 1.4 1.8 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 1.2 1.2 — 

Vocational/technical 1.2 1.3 — 

Less-than-4-year degree 1.7 1.3 1.8 

College degree 1.7 1.7 2.1 

Advanced degree 1.6 1.6 1.6 

Type of start in postsecondary education 

Delay 4-year 1.9 1.6 1.5 

Delay public 2-year 1.6 1.4 2.3 

Delay other 1.2 1.3 — 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 1.3 1.4 1.8 

Middle two quartiles 1.4 1.3 1.9 

High quartile 1.5 1.5 1.6 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 1.3 1.3 — 

Middle two quartiles 1.4 1.3 1.7 

High quartile 1.6 1.5 1.9 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native — — — 

Asian/Pacific Islander — — — 

Black 1.6 1.5 1.7 

Hispanic 1.5 1.4 2.0 

White 1.3 1.3 1.8 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

No high school diploma 1.4 1.2 1.7 

High school graduate 1.3 — — 

Vocational/technical 1.4 1.4 1.9 

Some college 1.5 1.5 1.7 

Bachelor's degree 1.6 — 1.7 

Advanced degree — — 1.8 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

40 
Table 2.7.D—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled 

before November 1982, by average number of postsecondary institutions 

attended prior to bachelor's degree attainment and selected characteristics 

Three 

Student characteristics One Two or more 

Total 50.4 31.8 17.8 

Sex 

Male 50.5 32.3 17.2 

Female 50.3 31.4 18.3 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None — — — 

Vocational/technical 33.2 34.0 32.8 

Less-than-4-year degree 40.0 37.3 22.7 

College degree 53.4 31.1 15.5 

Advanced degree 50.5 31.3 18.2 

Type of start in postsecondary education 

Full-time fall 1982 4-year 60.8 25.0 14.2 

Full-time fall 1982 public 2-year 7.9 62.0 30.2 

Part-time fall 1982 4-year 37.5 27.4 35.1 

Part-time fall 1982 public 2-year 7.8 54.6 37.6 

Fall 1982 other 26.5 49.7 23.8 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 55.3 34.3 10.4 

Middle two quartiles 52.3 31.0 16.7 

High quartile 47.8 33.8 18.4 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 48.9 37.0 14.1 

Middle two quartiles 44.2 34.4 21.4 

High quartile 54.4 30.2 15.5 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native — — — 

Asian/Pacific Islander 37.9 40.4 21.7 

Black 58.4 29.1 12.6 

Hispanic 51.5 28.8 19.7 

White 50.1 31.9 18.0 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

No high school diploma 53.7 30.0 16.3 

High school graduate 59.4 30.6 10.0 

Vocational/technical 48.2 31.8 19.9 

Some college 47.3 34.9 17.9 

Bachelor's degree 46.6 30.8 22.7 

Advanced degree 56.4 28.7 15.0 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

41 
Table 2.8.A—Average number of periods of enrollment prior to degree attainment among 

1980 high school sophomores, by type of degree and selected characteristics 

Student characteristics Certificate Associate's Bachelor's 

Total 1.3 1.3 1.2 

Sex 

Male 1.3 1.3 1.3 

Female 1.3 1.2 1.2 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 1.2 1.2 1.2 

Vocational/technical 1.2 1.2 1.6 

Less-than-4-year degree 1.4 1.2 1.4 

College degree 1.6 1.3 1.2 

Advanced degree 1.5 1.3 1.2 

Type of start in postsecondary education 

Full-time fall 1982 4-year 1.8 1.5 1.2 

Full-time fall 1982 public 2-year 1.5 1.2 1.5 

Part-time fall 1982 4-year — — 1.5 

Part-time fall 1982 public 2-year 1.4 1.4 1.4 

Delay 4-year 1.6 1.4 1.2 

Delay public 2-year 1.5 1.3 1.6 

Fall 1982 other 1.1 1.2 1.4 

Delay other 1.1 1.2 — 

Other 1.0 — — 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 1.2 1.2 1.2 

Middle two quartiles 1.3 1.2 1.3 

High quartile 1.5 1.3 1.2 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 1.3 1.2 1.3 

Middle two quartiles 1.3 1.2 1.3 

High quartile 1.5 1.3 1.2 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 1.3 — — 

Asian/Pacific Islander 1.4 1.2 1.3 

Black 1.4 1.3 1.2 

Hispanic 1.3 1.3 1.3 

White 1.3 1.2 1.3 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

No high school diploma 1.3 1.2 1.3 

High school graduate 1.3 1.1 1.2 

Vocational/technical 1.3 1.2 1.2 

Some college 1.3 1.3 1.3 

Bachelor's degree 1.6 1.3 1.2 

Advanced degree 1.6 1.4 1.2 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

42 
Table 2.8.B—Average number of periods of enrollment prior to degree attainment among 

1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled before November 1982, by 

type of degree and selected characteristics 

Student characteristics Certificate Associate's Bachelor's 

Total 1.4 1.3 1.2 

Sex 

Male 1.4 1.3 1.2 

Female 1.4 1.2 1.2 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 1.3 — — 

Vocational/technical 1.2 1.2 1.7 

Less-than-4-year degree 1.4 1.2 1.3 

College degree 1.6 1.3 1.2 

Advanced degree 1.6 1.3 1.2 

Type of start in postsecondary education 

Full-time fall 1982 4-year 1.8 1.5 1.2 

Full-time fall 1982 public 2-year 1.5 1.2 1.5 

Part-time fall 1982 4-year — — 1.5 

Part-time fall 1982 public 2-year 1.4 1.4 1.4 

Fall 1982 other 1.1 1.2 1.4 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 1.3 1.3 1.2 

Middle two quartiles 1.4 1.2 1.2 

High quartile 1.6 1.3 1.2 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 1.4 1.2 1.2 

Middle two quartiles 1.4 1.2 1.3 

High quartile 1.6 1.3 1.2 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native — — — 

Asian/Pacific Islander — 1.2 1.3 

Black 1.6 1.4 1.2 

Hispanic 1.4 1.3 1.3 

White 1.4 1.2 1.2 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

No high school diploma 1.3 1.2 1.3 

High school graduate 1.4 1.1 1.1 

Vocational/technical 1.3 1.2 1.2 

Some college 1.5 1.3 1.3 

Bachelor's degree 1.9 1.3 1.2 

Advanced degree 1.5 1.3 1.2 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

43 
Table 2.8.C—Average number of periods of enrollment prior to degree attainment among 

1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled after October 1982, by type 

of degree and selected characteristics 

Student characteristics Certificate Associate's Bachelor's 

Total 1.3 1.3 1.4 

Sex 

Male 1.3 1.3 1.4 

Female 1.3 1.2 1.4 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 1.2 1.2 — 

Vocational/technical 1.2 1.2 — 

Less-than-4-year degree 1.5 1.2 1.4 

College degree 1.6 1.3 1.4 

Advanced degree 1.4 1.3 1.3 

Type of start in 

postsecondary education 

Delay 4-year 1.6 1.4 1.2 

Delay public 2-year 1.5 1.3 1.6 

Delay other 1.1 1.2 — 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 1.2 1.2 1.3 

Middle two quartiles 1.3 1.2 1.4 

High quartile 1.3 1.3 1.3 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 1.3 1.1 — 

Middle two quartiles 1.3 1.2 1.2 

High quartile 1.5 1.2 1.5 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native — — — 

Asian/Pacific Islander — — — 

Black 1.4 1.3 1.3 

Hispanic 1.3 1.4 1.3 

White 1.3 1.2 1.4 

Parents' educational attainment 

in 1980 

No high school diploma 1.3 1.1 1.3 

High school graduate 1.2 — — 

Vocational/technical 1.3 1.3 1.4 

Some college 1.2 1.3 1.4 

Bachelor's degree 1.3 — 1.2 

Advanced degree — — 1.5 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

44 
Table 2.8.D—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who first enrolled 

before November 1982, by average number of periods of enrollment prior to 

bachelor's degree attainment and selected characteristics 

Three 

Student characteristics One Two or more 

Total 80.7 15.9 3.5 

Sex 

Male 80.0 16.8 3.2 

Female 81.3 15.1 3.7 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None — — — 

Vocational/technical 55.0 26.8 18.2 

Less-than-4-year degree 70.5 24.5 5.0 

College degree 81.8 14.1 4.0 

Advanced degree 82.9 15.3 1.9 

Type of start in postsecondary education 

Full-time fall 1982 4-year 85.2 12.6 2.3 

Full-time fall 1982 public 2-year 63.6 29.0 7.4 

Part-time fall 1982 4-year 63.4 27.2 9.5 

Part-time fall 1982 public 2-year 67.7 23.3 9.1 

Fall 1982 other 67.0 26.2 6.8 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 81.3 17.3 1.4 

Middle two quartiles 80.4 16.1 3.5 

High quartile 81.6 14.6 3.7 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 81.2 16.2 2.6 

Middle two quartiles 76.5 19.6 4.0 

High quartile 83.0 14.1 2.9 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native — — — 

Asian/Pacific Islander 72.9 26.9 0.2 

Black 84.3 13.4 2.3 

Hispanic 75.7 21.2 3.1 

White 80.7 15.6 3.7 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

No high school diploma 78.9 17.1 4.0 

High school graduate 88.0 12.0 0.1 

Vocational/technical 79.4 18.2 2.4 

Some college 79.3 16.3 4.5 

Bachelor's degree 79.6 17.3 3.2 

Advanced degree 85.9 11.3 2.9 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

45 
Table 2.9—Application to and acceptance by graduate and first professional programs 

among 1980 high school sophomores who had earned a bachelor's degree by 

1992, by selected characteristics 

Student characteristics 

Took 

graduate/professional 

admission exams (%) 

Applied 

to graduate or 

professional 

institution (%) 

Accepted 

at first 

choice (%) 

Number of 

applications 

Total 68.1 30.8 82.4 2.6 

Sex 

Male 66.9 30.8 77.9 2.9 

Female 69.3 30.8 86.8 2.4 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 

None 77.3 25.9 — — 

Vocational/technical 

Less-than-4-year degree 

College degree 

Advanced degree 

91.7 

83.9 

73.4 

55.8 

16.5 

18.2 

25.0 

41.7 

— 

88.2 

89.9 

76.7 

— 

1.9 

1.8 

3.3 

Amount borrowed for 

undergraduate education 

None 21.5 90.0 79.4 3.5 

Less than $5,000 

$5,000 or more 

67.3 

66.9 

32.3 

28.8 

79.3 

81.6 

2.7 

2.8 

Type of institution that granted 

bachelor's degree 

Private not-for-profit 

Public 

61.6 

70.5 

37.2 

28.4 

78.8 

84.5 

3.3 

2.2 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 

Asian/Pacific Islander 

Black 

— 

56.1 

73.2 

— 

42.2 

28.5 

— 

74.5 

85.6 

— 

3.5 

1.9 

Hispanic 

White 

69.7 

67.9 

33.3 

30.6 

93.1 

82.0 

1.9 

2.7 

Undergraduate major 

Agriculture/home economics 

Business 

68.0 

76.8 

36.3 

18.9 

— 

79.1 

— 

2.0 

Journalism/communications 

Education 

78.4 

73.5 

21.6 

35.9 

83.8 

100.0 

1.9 

1.4 

Math/computers/engineer 

Health 

69.4 

68.6 

31.3 

19.8 

92.2 

— 

1.8 

— 

Sciences (biology, chemistry) 

Sciences (psychology, economics) 

Art/music 

Letters/languages/history 

Other 

37.6 

54.2 

77.0 

51.1 

60.1 

59.5 

38.9 

28.9 

41.8 

40.7 

78.4 

83.1 

90.2 

75.9 

71.5 

5.2 

3.1 

1.8 

3.3 

2.3 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

46 
Section 3 

Labor Market Outcomes 

of the 1980 Sophomore Class 

Labor Force Participation 

Employment rates in February 1992 were higher among 1980 high school sophomores 

who had earned an associate's, bachelor's, or master's degree or higher than among those 

with lower levels of educational attainment. Moreover, the employment rates of those with 

a high school diploma were higher than the rates of those who had not attained a high 

school. However, there were no significant differences in the percentages of 1980 

sophomores who were working among those with associate's, bachelor's, and master's 

degrees (table 3.1.A).12 

Both gender and race–ethnicity appeared to be related to labor force participation. More 

male respondents than female respondents reported that they were working, and more 

females than males reported that they were out of the labor force in February 1992. 

Blacks were less likely than whites to be working, and were more likely than whites to be 

in the labor force but unemployed and not receiving benefits. However, there were no 

other significant differences in the rates of employment among the various racial–ethnic 

groups (table 3.1.A). 

Rates of employment and participation in the labor force among 1980 high school 

sophomores were not related to their parents' level of educational attainment (table 3.1.A). 

The 1980 high school sophomores who were in the lowest SES and test quartiles were 

less likely to be working in February 1992 than were those in the middle two or highest 

quartiles of each measure (table 3.1.A). Among respondents with bachelor's degrees, 

however, there were no significant differences in employment rates by SES or test scores 

in high school.13 Thus, lower rates of employment among sophomores with lower SES or 

test scores apparently reflected their lower average levels of educational attainment 

because employment rates in February 1992 were the same for all sophomores with 

bachelor's degrees, regardless of their SES or test quartile in high school. 

12The percentages of respondents working in the total, marital status, and race–ethnicity categories in table 3.1.A are 

inconsistent with those shown in table 1.3 because the timing of events reported differs. Table 1.3 reports on the 

activities of respondents during the week before they were surveyed, while table 3.1.A reports on respondents' 

activities during the entire month of February 1992. 

13The total row in table 3.1.B is inconsistent with the bachelor's degree attained row in table 3.1.A because the 

patterns of missing data for the samples used to generate the two tables are different. 

47 
Males and females in the 1980 sophomore class tended to work in different industries and 

occupations (table 3.2 and table 3.3). For example, women were more likely to be 

employed in clerical and service occupations, while men were more likely to be working 

as technicians. 

Annual Earnings 

Earnings were significantly related to the 1980 sophomores' level of educational 

attainment in 1992. For example, with each successively higher level of educational 

attainment, the percentage of 1980 sophomores who earned less than $15,000 in 1991 

declined (table 3.4). 

Members of the 1980 sophomore class who were married in 1992 had higher average 

earnings in 1991 than those who were never married or divorced (table 3.5). 

Respondents who had earned bachelor's degrees in the fields of health, math, computers, 

or engineering had significantly higher average earnings in their first year after degree 

attainment than did those who studied business, arts, or music (table 3.6.A). 

48 
Table 3.1.A—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores by type of labor force 

participation in February 1992, by selected characteristics 

Unemployed, Unemployed, Out 

receiving not receiving of labor 

Student characteristics Working benefits benefits force 

Total 83.1 2.4 4.8 9.7 

Highest degree earned by 1992 

Less than high school 69.0 3.8 12.9 14.3 

High school 81.9 2.6 5.0 10.5 

Certificate 81.3 2.3 5.9 10.5 

Associate's 89.7 1.5 2.6 6.1 

Bachelor's 89.1 1.8 2.4 6.7 

Master's 89.5 1.7 1.1 7.7 

Professional 81.1 0.0 1.5 17.4 

Doctorate — — — — 

Marital status in 1992 

Married 82.1 1.9 4.0 12.0 

Separated 75.2 1.8 10.6 12.4 

Divorced 84.6 2.2 4.7 8.5 

Widowed — — — — 

Never married 84.8 3.3 5.5 6.4 

Living in a marriagelike relationship 89.3 1.1 6.6 3.0 

Sex 

Male 90.1 3.0 2.9 4.0 

Female 76.3 1.8 6.7 15.2 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 78.6 3.6 6.8 11.0 

Middle two quartiles 85.7 1.8 3.6 8.9 

High quartile 86.8 1.8 3.0 8.4 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 74.9 3.6 9.1 12.5 

Middle two quartiles 85.4 2.4 3.8 8.5 

High quartile 88.3 1.2 2.0 8.6 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 81.6 2.1 4.9 11.5 

Asian/Pacific Islander 83.4 1.0 2.0 13.7 

Black 77.7 4.2 9.6 8.6 

Hispanic 80.5 3.7 5.0 10.9 

White 84.5 1.9 4.0 9.6 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

No high school diploma 83.8 2.5 5.1 8.6 

High school graduate 86.5 1.6 4.0 8.0 

Vocational/technical 84.7 1.6 4.2 9.5 

Some college 85.8 2.1 3.8 8.3 

Bachelor's degree 84.9 1.9 3.5 9.7 

Advanced degree 83.9 2.9 2.8 10.4 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

49 
Table 3.1.B—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores who had earned 

bachelor's degrees by 1992, by type of labor force participation in February 

1992 and selected characteristics 

Unemployed, Unemployed, Out of 

receiving not receiving labor 

Student characteristics Working benefits benefits force 

Total 88.9 1.7 2.3 7.2 

Marital status in 1992 

Married 88.9 1.0 2.2 7.9 

Separated — — — — 

Divorced 94.1 2.9 2.2 0.9 

Widowed — — — — 

Never married 88.4 2.5 2.1 6.9 

Living in a marriagelike relationship — — — — 

Sex 

Male 91.6 1.8 1.7 4.9 

Female 86.3 1.7 2.8 9.3 

Socioeconomic status (1980) 

Low quartile 87.5 4.0 3.1 5.4 

Middle two quartiles 91.1 1.5 1.9 5.6 

High quartile 88.1 1.5 2.4 8.0 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 85.1 0.2 8.8 6.0 

Middle two quartiles 89.2 2.7 1.7 6.4 

High quartile 88.5 1.3 2.4 7.8 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 86.7 0.0 3.7 9.6 

Asian/Pacific Islander 82.3 0.0 0.6 17.1 

Black 86.2 3.2 5.0 5.6 

Hispanic 89.4 0.9 1.8 8.0 

White 89.2 1.7 2.1 7.0 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 

No high school diploma 91.4 1.9 2.6 4.1 

High school graduate 90.6 3.9 0.3 5.3 

Vocational/technical 90.9 1.0 2.4 5.7 

Some college 89.0 1.6 2.9 6.5 

Bachelor's degree 87.7 1.5 1.1 9.8 

Advanced degree 84.1 2.2 1.6 12.1 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

50 
51 

Table 3.2—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by industry of employment in 1992 

characteristics 

Manufacture Manu- 

Student durable facture Public Wholesale Retail Business Personal Re

characteristics Agriculture Mining Construction goods nondurables utilities trade trade Finance services services s

Total 2.0 0.3 6.4 8.7 4.5 6.0 2.8 13.4 8.2 7.1 13.3 

Occupation 

Clerical-secretarial 0.7 0.0 3.3 5.0 3.7 7.8 2.2 6.9 15.1 6.6 10.5 

Clerical-financial 2.2 0.6 5.1 3.6 2.3 1.9 3.8 15.2 39.2 6.4 6.1 Clerical-other 0.8 0.5 0.5 5.2 5.2 14.8 3.6 13.7 14.5 8.4 7.0 Craftsman 0.1 0.1 23.2 12.1 7.9 6.8 1.2 7.2 0.3 20.1 11.7 Farmer 85.5 0.0 0.0 5.1 4.2 0.0 0.0 4.1 0.0 0.0 1.2 Homemaker — — — — — — — — — — — Laborer 4.6 0.9 14.3 14.9 7.9 5.8 3.0 11.7 1.0 6.0 21.5 

Manager-sales 0.3 0.0 3.2 7.7 4.1 4.9 7.9 37.4 7.6 6.0 12.1 Manager-government 0.0 0.0 2.0 0.7 0.0 14.7 0.0 0.7 11.0 2.8 6.0 Manager-retail 0.0 0.0 0.7 0.9 3.2 0.7 2.9 53.4 1.0 4.2 23.0 Manager-manufacturing 2.4 0.4 32.4 30.6 8.9 3.6 3.2 3.1 2.2 3.4 6.8 Manager-other 2.2 0.3 4.0 8.1 3.8 5.9 2.5 10.0 22.4 10.0 7.2 Military 0.0 0.0 0.5 0.3 0.0 5.5 0.0 0.9 0.0 0.6 0.3 Skilled operative 2.3 0.8 7.8 23.4 8.7 14.8 5.6 6.1 1.3 9.4 10.4 Professional-arts 1.7 0.0 0.3 4.4 1.7 10.2 1.1 4.4 2.8 13.2 15.5 

Professional-medical 0.4 0.0 0.0 0.4 0.1 0.1 0.8 1.3 0.4 0.8 9.2 Professional-engineer 0.8 0.0 12.6 43.5 8.3 6.0 0.8 1.4 1.3 3.3 5.2 Physician 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.7 0.0 1.3 5.3 Professional-legal 0.0 0.0 1.1 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.8 4.6 14.5 15.0 Professional-other 2.4 0.0 0.1 3.6 2.9 4.3 0.7 3.4 18.3 5.2 7.6 Owner-retail 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.8 0.2 0.0 66.1 0.0 6.7 24.1 Owner-manufacturing 4.3 0.0 62.4 9.6 4.4 0.0 1.0 8.8 0.0 3.4 6.1 Owner-other 9.6 0.1 3.6 6.3 1.3 5.2 3.1 10.5 6.8 7.6 32.7 Protective services 1.0 0.0 0.8 0.8 0.0 2.1 0.0 2.3 0.7 2.7 8.5 

Sales 0.7 0.0 0.5 5.7 6.9 4.0 9.1 40.4 12.7 8.1 7.2 

School teacher 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 0.7 0.7 5.5 

Service 0.0 0.0 0.2 0.6 1.6 4.2 0.7 18.8 1.3 2.6 37.3 

Tech-computer related 0.0 0.0 0.2 16.0 3.9 11.4 3.7 6.8 19.1 11.6 4.6 

Tech-noncomputer 

related 0.3 1.3 2.5 6.8 2.7 13.4 0.5 5.7 4.5 12.9 8.8 

Highest degree earned 

by 1992 

Less than high school 4.0 0.0 10.9 10.7 13.0 3.5 3.0 16.7 2.3 8.0 19.1 

High school 2.3 0.4 8.4 9.7 4.3 6.3 3.4 15.9 6.0 7.2 14.0 

Certificate 1.1 0.2 6.6 5.6 3.1 6.4 1.7 12.1 7.6 8.9 18.4 

Associate's 2.0 0.2 4.5 8.5 5.0 7.8 2.7 11.4 7.0 7.1 13.9 

Bachelor's 1.5 0.1 2.6 7.5 3.8 5.8 2.5 9.9 15.1 6.4 8.2 

Master's 1.0 0.0 0.9 10.5 5.4 4.5 0.8 4.7 10.9 2.8 8.6 

Professional 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.1 0.5 0.5 0.0 1.9 1.1 12.3 14.2 

Doctorate — — — — — — — — — — — 
Table 3.2—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by industry of employment in 1992 

characteristics—Continued 

52 

Manufacture Manu- 

Student durable facture Public Wholesale Retail Business Personal Re

characteristics Agriculture Mining Construction goods nondurables utilities trade trade Finance services services sMarital status in 1992 

Married 2.0 0.2 6.3 9.3 4.9 6.0 3.1 12.1 8.5 7.0 12.5 

Separated 1.4 0.0 8.4 8.6 3.9 4.4 1.5 17.2 6.5 6.7 14.9 

Divorced 1.4 1.0 10.3 11.5 4.2 7.1 2.4 12.2 4.6 6.2 14.0 

Widowed — — — — — — — — — — — 

Never married 2.2 0.3 5.7 7.4 4.3 5.8 2.5 15.4 8.5 7.4 14.0 

Living in a marriagelike relationship 3.4 0.0 8.0 6.8 1.0 9.2 6.2 9.6 4.6 11.6 13.5 

Sex 

Male 3.2 0.4 10.6 11.1 4.6 7.5 3.4 12.8 5.1 8.9 11.8 

Female 0.6 0.2 1.5 5.9 4.5 4.3 2.2 14.0 11.7 5.0 15.2 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/ 

Alaska Native 2.9 0.0 7.4 8.9 2.8 4.4 1.1 15.1 4.4 3.4 22.4 

Asian/Pacific Islander 0.8 0.0 1.1 7.7 3.8 8.5 1.4 15.3 9.0 5.3 15.3 

Black 1.3 0.0 3.3 6.7 4.2 9.4 2.4 10.3 7.0 5.5 15.9 

Hispanic 2.0 0.7 6.1 8.5 6.3 5.7 2.7 15.7 6.8 5.7 14.2 

White 2.1 0.3 6.8 9.0 4.5 5.6 3.0 13.6 8.5 7.4 12.6 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 
Table 3.3—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by occupation in 1992 and selected 

Student Home- Skilled Profes- Protective 

characteristic Clerical Craftsman Farmer maker Laborer Manager Military operative sional Owner services Sales 

Total 15.8 6.4 0.4 0.1 15.1 17.0 1.8 5.9 12.5 2.6 2.1 6.6 

Industry 

Agriculture 9.2 0.3 17.6 0.0 34.9 11.4 0.0 6.8 7.1 8.9 1.0 2.5 

Mining — — — — — — — — — — — — Construction 7.4 23.2 0.0 0.0 33.9 17.9 0.2 7.2 3.0 5.6 0.3 0.5 Manufacture durable goods 8.5 8.9 0.2 0.0 25.8 17.6 0.1 15.8 9.5 1.7 0.2 4.3 Manufacture nondurables 13.0 11.1 0.4 0.0 26.1 15.7 0.0 11.3 5.5 1.0 0.0 9.9 Public utilities 21.4 7.2 0.0 0.0 14.4 13.6 1.7 14.5 6.8 1.4 0.7 4.3 Wholesale trade 16.8 2.6 0.0 0.0 15.8 21.1 0.0 11.6 3.2 1.9 0.0 21.0 

Retail trade 13.0 3.4 0.1 0.0 13.2 28.8 0.1 2.7 2.2 4.4 0.4 19.8 Finance 41.3 0.2 0.0 0.0 1.9 25.1 0.0 0.9 9.5 1.3 0.2 10.2 Business services 15.5 18.0 0.0 0.1 12.6 16.3 0.1 7.7 8.3 2.5 0.8 7.4 Personal services 9.8 5.6 0.0 0.2 24.3 14.3 0.0 4.6 8.7 5.2 1.3 3.5 Recreation services 5.7 2.9 0.0 0.0 5.9 24.7 0.0 2.0 27.3 3.8 1.8 6.3 Professional service 16.3 1.1 0.0 0.0 4.0 8.1 1.5 1.6 37.7 0.7 1.8 1.0 Public administration 18.6 4.3 0.0 0.2 6.0 12.6 16.4 3.0 11.1 0.3 16.0 0.2 

Highest degree earned by 1992 

Less than high school 4.3 13.9 0.4 0.0 39.7 9.9 0.0 9.8 2.9 2.4 0.1 6.8 

High school 17.4 7.7 0.5 0.1 20.7 15.8 2.3 7.9 4.6 3.2 2.5 6.3 Certificate 19.6 10.5 0.1 0.0 13.7 9.3 1.4 6.1 10.1 3.0 3.2 4.9 Associate's 21.5 5.8 1.0 0.3 8.9 18.5 0.8 4.1 15.4 2.0 1.8 5.0 Bachelor's 13.0 1.2 0.2 0.0 2.9 24.7 1.9 1.7 25.5 1.9 1.4 8.8 Master's 4.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.7 20.0 0.0 0.9 40.8 1.6 1.0 3.8 Professional 3.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 3.3 2.5 1.8 78.7 3.5 2.6 2.5 Doctorate — — — — — — — — — — — — 

Marital status in 1992 

Married 17.0 6.7 0.4 0.0 13.3 17.6 2.1 5.8 12.0 2.9 1.9 6.4 

Separated 18.3 9.1 0.0 0.0 21.9 7.3 3.0 9.0 8.5 3.0 0.6 7.6 

Divorced 15.1 6.6 0.0 0.0 20.0 13.9 3.1 6.5 11.0 3.1 2.2 5.5 Widowed — — — — — — — — — — — — 

Never married 13.6 5.8 0.5 0.1 16.2 16.7 1.1 6.0 14.0 2.3 2.5 7.3 Living in a marriagelike relationship 15.2 7.7 0.0 0.0 31.1 17.9 0.6 4.3 5.6 0.0 1.9 2.1 

Sex 

Male 4.8 10.6 0.7 0.1 21.4 17.7 3.0 8.7 9.7 3.3 3.2 6.4 

Female 28.5 1.4 0.1 0.0 7.9 16.0 0.4 2.8 15.7 1.9 0.8 6.8 

53 
Table 3.3—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by occupation in 1992 and selected 

Continued 

Student Home- Skilled Profes- Protective characteristic Clerical Craftsman Farmer maker Laborer Manager Military operative sional Owner services Sales Race–ethnicity 

Native American/ 

Alaska Native 10.0 14.6 0.0 0.6 26.5 13.7 0.9 5.6 7.5 2.3 4.0 5.5 

Asian/Pacific Islander 19.5 2.3 0.0 0.0 8.9 14.0 1.6 6.2 21.3 4.0 2.6 2.4 Black 18.6 4.7 0.1 0.0 20.8 11.0 3.1 6.6 10.5 0.9 4.1 3.8 Hispanic 17.9 6.4 0.5 0.0 21.9 14.0 1.6 6.2 8.0 1.9 3.1 6.8 White 15.2 6.5 0.5 0.1 13.3 18.1 1.7 5.8 13.2 3.0 1.7 7.2 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

54 
Table 3.4—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by annual earnings in 

1991 and selected characteristics 

Less than $15,000– $30,000– $50,000– $75,000 

Student characteristics $15,000 $29,999 $49,999 $74,999 or more 

Total 29.1 48.4 19.7 2.2 0.7 

Highest degree earned by 1992 

Less than high school 51.1 38.8 8.6 1.4 0.1 

High school 33.1 49.7 14.9 1.5 0.7 

Certificate 32.7 49.8 16.1 0.6 0.8 

Associate's 24.3 55.8 18.4 1.1 0.4 

Bachelor's 16.3 46.5 33.3 3.4 0.5 

Master's 19.4 33.1 36.3 9.1 2.1 

Professional 16.2 31.3 34.7 13.4 4.4 

Doctorate — — — — — 

Marital status in 1992 

Married 27.7 49.4 20.3 2.1 0.6 

Separated 44.8 43.2 11.9 0.1 0.1 

Divorced 35.2 49.8 13.7 0.5 0.9 

Widowed — — — — — 

Never married 29.0 47.6 20.0 2.7 0.8 

Living in a marriage-like relationship 32.0 51.9 14.3 1.9 0.0 

Sex 

Male 21.9 49.0 25.1 3.1 1.0 

Female 37.3 47.6 13.6 1.1 0.4 

Amount still owed for education 

None 29.5 48.9 18.8 2.0 0.8 

Less than $1,000 26.9 46.8 24.8 1.5 0.0 

$1,000 or more 26.9 45.7 23.8 3.4 0.3 

Occupation in 1992 

Clerical 31.6 57.3 9.8 0.7 0.6 

Craftsman 19.0 57.1 21.3 1.7 1.0 

Farmer — — — — — 

Homemaker — — — — — 

Laborer 39.6 46.1 12.9 1.2 0.1 

Manager 12.9 53.3 29.5 3.6 0.7 

Military 17.7 59.3 22.1 0.9 0.0 

Skilled operative 18.4 59.9 19.7 1.9 0.0 

Professional 20.1 44.4 30.8 3.9 0.9 

Owner 27.4 37.8 19.6 10.5 4.7 

Protective services 23.5 46.0 28.9 1.7 0.0 

Sales 32.8 41.9 21.0 3.8 0.5 

School teacher 34.9 57.7 7.4 0.0 0.0 

Service 53.6 38.3 7.3 0.3 0.6 

Technical 8.8 42.0 46.1 2.3 0.9 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 46.9 39.5 10.9 0.7 2.0 

Asian/Pacific Islander 18.6 47.3 28.4 3.9 1.7 

Black 37.0 46.7 14.0 1.9 0.5 

Hispanic 32.0 49.4 16.2 1.7 0.7 

White 27.7 48.3 21.0 2.3 0.7 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

55 
Table 3.5—Average earnings among 1980 high school sophomores in their first year after 

terminating their education, by highest degree attained and selected 

characteristics 

Average 

High Advanced earnings, 

Student characteristics school Certificate Associate's Bachelor's degree all degrees 

Total $15,729 $15,014 $17,785 $21,356 $26,122 $18,028 

Marital status in 1992 

Married 16,962 16,227 18,889 22,385 27,310 19,042 

Separated 12,714 13,370 — — — 14,858 

Divorced 14,160 14,505 18,582 20,147 — 15,853 

Widowed — — — — — — 

Never married 13,708 13,162 15,731 20,371 24,861 16,859 

Living in a marriagelike relationship — — — — — 16,696 

Sex 

Male 17,286 18,155 17,870 23,341 28,181 19,918 

Female 14,293 12,659 17,725 19,500 23,759 16,367 

Repeated grade/held back in school 

Never repeated 13,836 15,304 17,930 20,771 — 16,334 

Repeated grade 16,191 15,386 17,877 21,627 25,952 18,526 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 17,714 9,428 — — — 15,426 

Asian/Pacific Islander 16,177 — — 21,096 27,762 19,607 

Black 13,724 13,170 14,181 19,721 22,127 14,775 

Hispanic 14,284 14,752 17,536 21,811 25,893 16,216 

White 16,283 15,737 18,391 21,478 26,564 18,736 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

56 
Table 3.6.A—Average earnings among 1980 high school sophomores in their first and third 

year after attaining a bachelor's degree, by selected characteristics 

Student characteristics 

Earnings in first year 

after bachelor's degree 

Earnings in third year 

after bachelor's degree 

Total $20,932 $24,215 

Sex 

Male 

Female 

22,649 

19,362 

27,190 

21,526 

Institution control where earned 

bachelor's degree 

Private not-for-profit 

Public 

21,682 

20,931 

25,199 

24,082 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 

Asian/Pacific Islander 

Black 

Hispanic 

White 

— 

20,798 

20,112 

22,436 

20,984 

— 

25,442 

21,199 

25,463 

24,372 

Undergraduate major 

Agriculture/home economics 

Business 

Journalism/communications 

Education 

Math/computers/engineering 

Health 

Sciences (biology, chemistry) 

Sciences (psychology, economics) 

Art/music 

Letters/languages/history 

Other 

21,802 

21,634 

19,222 

16,295 

26,643 

27,253 

19,339 

18,875 

16,945 

17,357 

18,328 

21,588 

25,494 

22,687 

18,526 

30,442 

29,467 

21,559 

21,902 

19,210 

21,560 

20,754 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: All estimates are in 1992 dollars. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

57 
Table 3.6.B—Average earnings among 1980 high school graduates in their first and third 

year after attaining an associate's degree, by selected characteristics 

Earnings in first year Earnings in third year 

Student characteristics after associate's degree after associate's degree 

Total $16,912 $20,093 

Sex 

Male 17,054 21,685 

Female 16,813 18,988 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native — — 

Asian/Pacific Islander — — 

Black 13,655 15,550 

Hispanic 15,590 25,163 

White 17,614 20,302 

Undergraduate major 

Agriculture/home economics — — 

Business 16,813 17,940 

Journalism/communications — — 

Education — — 

Math/computers/engineer 16,785 19,220 

Health 20,911 23,346 

Sciences (biology, chemistry) — — 

Sciences (psychology, economics) — — 

Art/music — — 

Letters/languages/history — — 

Other 14,805 17,225 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: All estimates are in 1992 dollars. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

58 
Table 3.6.C—Average earnings among 1980 high school sophomores in their first and third 

year after attaining a postsecondary certificate, by selected characteristics 

Earnings in first year Earnings in third year 

Student characteristics after certificate after certificate 

Total $14,526 $17,551 

Sex 

Male 17,437 21,137 

Female 12,266 14,869 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 10,529 — 

Asian/Pacific Islander — — 

Black 12,869 14,611 

Hispanic 14,593 14,532 

White 15,145 18,712 

Undergraduate major 

Agriculture/home economics — — 

Business 12,956 15,444 

Journalism/communications — — 

Education — — 

Math/computers/engineering 16,284 18,947 

Health 15,364 18,101 

Sciences (biology, chemistry) — — 

Sciences (psychology, economics) — — 

Art/music — — 

Letters/languages/history — — 

Other 13,879 19,514 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

NOTE: All estimates are in 1992 dollars. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

59 
Section 4 

Voting Behavior, Attitudes, and Family Formation 

of the 1980 Sophomore Class 

Voting Behavior 

Roughly 65 percent of 1980 high school sophomores were registered to vote in 1986 and 

1992. Fifty-three percent of all sophomores voted in the 1988 presidential election, while 

only one-third voted in any other 1988 elections. More respondents voted in the 1988 

presidential election than in the 1984 election (table 4.1). 

The 1980 high school sophomores' voting rates in the 1988 elections were positively 

associated with educational attainment: as attainment increased, the percentage who voted 

also increased. For example, 25 percent of those with less than a high school education 

voted in the 1988 presidential election, compared with 46 percent of those with a high 

school diploma (table 4.1). 

Attitudes 

Questions about the values held by the 1980 sophomores reveal that more than 95 percent 

of all 1980 high school sophomores felt that success in work, having steady work, strong 

friendships, and better opportunities for their children were important. By contrast, only 

about half (56 percent) said that having money was important (table 4.2). 

Males were significantly more likely than females to feel that success in work, steady 

work, and money were important, and were equally as likely as women to value 

friendship and children's opportunities (table 4.2). 

Family Formation 

Respondents who rated themselves as “very popular” in 1982 (when most of them were 

high school seniors) were more likely to never have been married than those who rated 

themselves “somewhat popular” (table 4.3). 

Approximately half the 1980 high school sophomores had at least one child by 1992, 

while nearly 10 percent had at least three children. The rate of parenting varied by gender, 

however, and males were significantly more likely than females to report having no 

children (table 4.4). 

60 
Table 4.1—Voting indicators for 1980 high school sophomores, by selected characteristics 

Percent Percent Percent Percent voted Percent 

registered registered voted 1984 1988 in non- voted 1988 

Student characteristics in 1986 in 1992 presidential presidential presidential 

Total 66.9 65.0 48.8 33.5 52.7 

Political beliefs in 1980 

Conservative 75.6 75.5 58.3 42.2 65.7 

Moderate 69.9 70.0 56.0 40.3 60.8 

Liberal 74.4 71.2 60.3 37.7 62.1 

Radical 72.4 67.2 50.3 36.0 52.3 

None 57.7 57.6 39.3 27.6 44.4 

Highest degree earned by 1992 

Less than high school 46.1 43.0 24.1 14.4 25.3 

High school 61.6 61.1 43.0 29.9 46.2 

Certificate 67.6 65.1 48.0 35.1 53.0 

Associate's 69.3 71.2 56.9 39.4 60.4 

Bachelor's 80.2 76.0 63.8 43.4 72.0 

Master's 87.3 85.3 65.9 49.7 75.6 

Professional 79.4 81.2 63.7 42.0 70.6 

Doctorate — — — — — 

Marital status in 1992 

Married 65.5 64.3 47.4 33.2 52.7 

Separated 65.2 54.1 41.5 22.7 38.7 

Divorced 57.0 55.5 36.9 22.9 40.0 

Widowed — — — — — 

Never married 70.6 68.2 53.4 36.3 56.1 

Living in a marriagelike relationship 63.4 62.9 45.5 35.6 47.4 

Sex 

Male 67.2 64.2 48.2 32.2 51.5 

Female 66.5 65.8 49.4 34.9 53.9 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/ 

Alaska Native 64.5 65.6 41.4 29.4 40.2 

Asian/Pacific Islander 50.6 56.8 33.2 25.7 39.9 

Black 73.9 70.7 51.2 36.1 51.3 

Hispanic 62.4 63.0 41.3 29.8 43.3 

White 66.6 64.5 49.7 33.7 54.6 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

61 
Table 4.2—Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores who reported in 1992 that they 

valued the specified items in their lives, by selected characteristics 

Making their 

Success in Steady Strong children 

Student characteristics their work work Money friendships better off 

Total 95.9 95.6 55.6 95.2 96.5 

Marital and parental status 

in 1992 

Married no children 96.8 97.7 55.2 97.5 95.8 

Married with children 95.6 93.5 52.3 95.0 98.6 

Divorced/sep/widow 

no children 97.2 98.7 50.8 95.3 93.0 

Divorced/sep/widow 

with children 95.6 95.5 56.2 91.5 98.4 

Never married 

no children 95.9 96.5 57.9 96.6 93.9 

Never married 

with children 95.6 96.6 62.3 88.3 98.0 

Living together 

no children 99.8 98.1 46.8 100.0 95.4 

Living together 

with children 95.7 99.7 76.6 94.3 100.0 

Highest degree earned by 1992 

Less than high school 95.4 95.3 63.8 94.2 99.6 

High school 95.3 95.2 56.2 94.4 97.5 

Certificate 96.8 95.2 57.1 94.0 98.0 

Associate's 96.3 97.5 56.5 96.2 97.5 

Bachelor's 96.6 96.0 49.7 98.2 93.0 

Master's 98.4 96.3 49.8 98.1 89.4 

Professional 98.4 99.5 50.7 99.7 96.8 

Doctorate — — — — — 

Sex 

Male 97.3 97.4 60.1 95.1 96.2 

Female 94.5 93.9 51.2 95.3 96.8 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/ 

Alaska Native 97.4 93.5 57.7 96.3 96.8 

Asian/Pacific Islander 95.9 97.6 58.3 98.2 97.1 

Black 96.3 96.5 66.0 85.1 98.1 

Hispanic 97.1 95.6 61.5 92.2 98.4 

White 95.7 95.4 52.9 97.2 96.0 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

62 
Table 4.3—Percentage distribution of 1980 high school sophomores, by number of times 

they had been married by 1992 and selected characteristics 

Never Three 

Student characteristics married One Two or more 

Total 37.9 56.8 5.1 0.3 

Sex 

Male 45.5 50.8 3.7 0.1 

Female 30.7 62.4 6.3 0.6 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 36.5 51.5 11.7 0.3 

Asian/Pacific Islander 49.4 46.8 3.8 0.0 

Black 55.2 41.7 3.1 0.1 

White 34.7 59.5 5.4 0.4 

Hispanic-Mexican 40.4 56.3 3.2 0.0 

Hispanic-Cuban 37.7 58.2 4.2 0.0 

Hispanic-Puerto Rican 44.6 51.2 3.7 0.5 

Hispanic-other 36.0 59.2 4.8 0.0 

Religious background in 1980 

Baptist 32.4 59.3 8.1 0.3 

Methodist 34.2 60.4 5.2 0.2 

Lutheran 34.3 61.8 3.9 0.1 

Presbyterian 34.0 61.9 3.7 0.4 

Episcopalian 48.5 45.8 5.7 0.0 

Other Protestant 31.1 65.2 3.6 0.1 

Catholic 41.8 54.5 3.6 0.1 

Other Christian 32.0 59.9 6.6 1.5 

Jewish 62.0 33.9 3.6 0.6 

Other religion 29.9 64.4 4.4 1.4 

None 44.4 50.6 4.5 0.5 

Popularity in 1982 

Very popular 44.2 52.7 3.1 0.0 

Somewhat popular 37.0 57.6 5.0 0.3 

Not at all popular 38.9 56.4 4.7 0.1 

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

63 
Table 4.4—Percentage distribution of 1980 sophomores, by the number of children parented 

through 1992 and selected characteristics 

Three Five 

None One Two or four or more 

Total 48.9 21.3 20.1 9.4 0.2 

Marital status in 1992 

Married 29.7 27.8 28.8 13.4 0.3 

Separated 20.6 24.8 32.7 21.2 0.7 

Divorced 32.4 30.0 26.9 10.5 0.3 

Widowed — — — — — 

Never married 81.0 10.0 6.0 3.0 0.1 

Living in a marriagelike relationship 46.3 23.7 17.0 12.9 0.1 

Sex 

Male 56.2 19.1 16.8 7.7 0.1 

Female 41.8 23.5 23.3 11.1 0.4 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 33.5 16.4 31.9 17.8 0.4 

Asian/Pacific Islander 62.4 23.1 8.5 6.0 0.0 

Black 36.7 25.8 21.9 15.2 0.4 

White 51.9 20.3 19.6 8.0 0.2 

Hispanic-Mexican 41.7 23.4 19.9 15.0 0.0 

Hispanic-Cuban 51.4 20.8 19.9 7.9 0.0 

Hispanic-Puerto Rican 44.5 21.8 23.9 9.6 0.2 

Hispanic-other 41.7 24.4 21.9 12.1 0.0 

Religious background in 1980 

Baptist 40.4 22.8 25.1 11.5 0.2 

Methodist 47.8 25.3 20.8 5.8 0.3 

Lutheran 54.4 19.0 17.8 8.6 0.3 

Presbyterian 56.2 19.7 20.0 4.1 0.0 

Episcopalian 68.1 14.9 13.9 3.2 0.0 

Other Protestant 54.9 20.1 15.8 8.7 0.6 

Catholic 57.2 20.2 15.3 7.3 0.1 

Other Christian 40.1 22.4 23.8 13.6 0.1 

Jewish 80.0 10.4 6.0 3.7 0.0 

Other religion 38.9 19.4 25.2 16.0 0.5 

None 46.7 23.0 18.5 11.5 0.3 

Number of marriages 

Never married 81.1 9.9 6.0 2.9 0.1 

One 31.4 28.5 28.1 11.7 0.2 

Two 16.5 24.5 30.3 27.1 1.7 

Three or more 14.6 33.8 25.2 14.6 11.9 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

64 
Appendix A: Glossary 

65 
Appendix A 

Glossary 

This glossary describes the variables used in this report. These items were taken directly 

from the HS&B Fourth Followup Data Analysis System (DAS), an NCES software application 

that generates tables directly from Fourth Followup data files. A description of the DAS files 

can be found in appendix B. 

The variables and definitions are divided into the following categories: postsecondary 

education variables, other education variables, demographic and status variables, employment 

variables, and other variables. The variables are organized within each category in alphabetic 

order by item name. 

Postsecondary Education Variables 

Accepted at 1982 first choice college (SY14B1) 

No applications Student did not apply to college in 1982. 

Attended first choice college Student was accepted and attended first choice school in 

1982. 

Accepted but did not attend Student was accepted at first choice school in 1982, but did 

not attend at that time. 

Was not accepted at first choice Student was denied admission to first choice school. 

Accepted at first choice graduate school (Y4210) 

Yes 

No 

Don't know yet 

Amount still owed for education (Y4216) 

The amount still owed for education is stored as a continuous variable in the HS&B Fourth 

Followup Data Analysis System file. 

66 
Applied to graduate or professional institution (Y4206) 

Yes 

No 

Entry status (Y4203C01) 

Immediate entrants Students who first entered postsecondary education before 

November 1982. 

Delayed entrants Students who first entered postsecondary education after 

October 1982. 

First postsecondary institution type (composite of ATNDTYPA–ATNDTYPE) 

Never enrolled 

Private for-profit 

Private NFP less-than-4-year 

Public less-than-2-year 

Public 2-year 

Public 4-year 

Private not-for-profit 4-year 

Student never enrolled in postsecondary education 

Student first attended a private for-profit (proprietary) 

institution. A private for-profit institution is a 

postsecondary institution that is privately owned and 

operated as a profit-making enterprise. Includes career 

colleges and proprietary institutions. 

Student first attended a private not-for-profit institution 

offering a less-than-4-year degree. A private, not-for-profit 

institution is a postsecondary institution that is controlled 

by an independent governing board and incorporated under 

section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. 

Student first attended a public less-than-2-year (vocationaltechnical) institution. A public institution is a 

postsecondary education institution operated by publicly 

elected or appointed officials in which the program and 

activities are under the control of these officials and which 

is supported primarily by public funds. 

Student first attended a public institution offering a 2- to 3-

year degree (i.e., associate's degree). 

Student first attended a public college or university offering 

a bachelor's degree or higher. 

Student first attended a private not-for-profit college or 

university offering a bachelor's degree or higher. 

First postsecondary institution start date (derived from MONSTRT) 

The MONSTRT variable records the number of months between June 1982 and the student's first 

entry into postsecondary education. This variable was used to derive the categories in the first 

institution start date variable. 

Never enrolled 

67 
Before November 1982 

November 1982 to May 1983 

June 1983 to May 1984 

June 1984 to May 1986 

June 1986 or later 

Intensity of initial enrollment (Y4203G01) 

Full-time Students who reported that they enrolled full time in the first institution 

that they attended. 

Part-time Students who reported that they enrolled less than full time in the first 

institution that they attended. 

Highest degree attained by 1992 (HGHDG92) 

This variable is a composite that summarizes the highest degree attained by 1980 high school 

sophomores as of June 1992. The variable categories are mutually exclusive, so each student is 

included in only one category. Students who did not earn a postsecondary certificate or degree 

may have attended a postsecondary institution at some time between 1982 and 1992, and 

students who earned a degree might have enrolled in an institution offering a higher degree than 

the one that they earned without completing the program by June 1992. Likewise, students in 

higher degree attainment categories may have also earned a lower degree as well, even though it 

is not reflected in this variable. In several tables, the master's degree, professional degree, and 

doctorate categories were combined into a single advanced degree category. 

Less than high school graduate Student did not complete high school. 

High school graduate only Student completed high school. 

Vocational certificate Student completed a vocational certificate, diploma, or 

award. 

Associate's degree Student completed an associate's degree. 

Bachelor's degree Student completed a bachelor's degree. 

Master's degree Student completed a master's degree. 

Professional degree Student completed a professional degree. 

Doctorate Student completed a doctorate. 

Number of applications to college in 1982 (FY124) 

Did not apply Student did not apply to any colleges in 1982. 

One college Student applied to one college in 1982. 

68 
2–3 colleges Student applied to two or three colleges in 1982. 

4 or more colleges Student applied to four or more colleges in 1982. 

Number of applications to graduate school (Y4208) 

This is a continuous variable that records the number of applications for graduate school that 

1980 sophomores reported. 

Number of postsecondary institutions attended prior to highest degree attainment in 1992 

(composite of PSSCHLA–PSSCHLF) 

The number of schools attended prior to degree attainment is specified both in relation to the type 

of degree attained and across all degree types. The average number of institutions attended by 

degree type or across all types of degrees include only those students who had attained a degree; 

students who attended but did not attain a degree were not included in the calculation. The 

number of schools was determined by asking students how many schools they had attended and 

by matching institutional identification numbers (FICE codes) to ensure that multiple spells of 

attendance at one school were not counted as more than one school. 

Number of spells of enrollment prior to highest degree attainment in 1992 (ENROLSPL) 

ENROLSPL is a composite variable that summarizes across degree types the number of spells of 

enrollment experienced by students prior to their highest degree attainment; the number of spells 

is determined for each type of degree by PSSPELLA–PSSPELLF. A single spell of enrollment 

was defined as any number of months of enrollment that did not include breaks of longer than one 

month (i.e., attendance was not recorded for any part of two adjacent months), excluding summer 

(i.e., the student was enrolled in the last standard term of an academic year and the first standard 

term of the following academic year). A single spell could include attendance at more than one 

school, provided the break between enrollments did not exceed one month or was not longer than 

the break between academic years. 

Postsecondary expectations in 1982 (PSEPLANS) 

This variable describes the highest degree students planned to get at the time they were surveyed 

in 1982, when most of the 1980 sophomores were high school seniors. 

None Student did not expect to pursue postsecondary education. 

Vocational/technical Student planned to earn a vocational/technical certificate, 

diploma, or award. 

Less-than 4-year degree Student planned to earn a less-than-4-year degree, most 

commonly an associate's degree. 

College degree Student planned to earn a bachelor's degree. 

Advanced degree Student planned to earn a master's degree, professional 

degree, or doctorate. 

Took graduate or professional exams (Y4207A) 

The 1980 sophomores were asked in the 1992 survey whether they had taken a graduate or 

69 
professional admission examination. Types of examinations included Dental Admission Test, 

Graduate Management Admission Test, Graduate Record Examination, Law School Admission 

Test, Medical College Admission Test, or other admission test. 

Type of postsecondary institution (Y4203A01) 

4-year institutions Includes 4-year private, not-for-profit and 4-year public 

institutions that offer bachelor's degrees or higher. These 

institutions may also offer associate's degrees or vocational 

certificates. 

Public 2-year institutions Includes public 2- to 3-year institutions that offer 

associate's degrees or vocational certificates. 

Other institutions Includes private, for-profit (proprietary) institutions, public 

less-than-2-year institutions, and private, not-for-profit lessthan-4-year institutions. 

Type of start in postsecondary education (PSESTART) 

This is a composite variable that combines type of institution, intensity of initial enrollment, and 

timing of initial enrollment into a single variable. 

No enrollment Student did not enroll in postsecondary education. 

Full-time 4-year, fall 1982 Student enrolled full time in a private, not-for-profit or 

public 4-year institution before November 1982. 

Full-time public 2-year, fall 1982 Student enrolled full time in a public 2- to 3-year 

institution before November 1982. 

Part-time 4-year, fall 1982 Student enrolled part time in a private, not-for-profit or 

public 4-year institution before November 1982. 

Part-time public 2-year, fall 1982 Student enrolled part time in a public 2- to 3-year 

institution before November 1982. 

Delay 4-year Student enrolled full time or part time in a private, notfor-profit or public 4-year institution after October 1982. 

Delay public 2-year Student enrolled full time or part time in a public 2- to 

3-year institution after October 1982. 

Less-than-2-year, fall 1982 Student enrolled full time or part time before November 

1982 in a private, not-for-profit less-than-2-year 

institution; a private, for-profit less-than-2-year 

institution; or a public less-than-2-year institution. 

Delay, less-than-2-year Student enrolled full time or part time after October 1982 

in a private, not-for-profit less-than-2-year institution; a 

private, for-profit less-than-2-year institution; or a public 

less-than-2-year institution. 

70 
Other enrollment Student enrolled in a postsecondary institution that did 

not fit into one of the other categories (e.g., a 4-year 

proprietary institution). 

Undergraduate major (UGMAJOR) 

Undergraduate majors were recorded for bachelor's degree recipients in this composite variable. 

Majors were reported by students and recorded by a 2-digit Classification of Instructional 

program (CIP) code. These codes were then aggregated into the categories shown here. 

Agriculture/home economics 

Business/marketing 

Journalism/communications 

Education 

Math/computer science/engineering 

Health 

Sciences (e.g., biology, chemistry) 

Social sciences (e.g., economics, psychology) 

Art/music 

Letters/languages/history 

Other 

Other Education Variables 

College expectations in sixth grade (YB072A) 

Yes, decided to go Student expected while in sixth grade to attend college. 

Planned not to go Student expected while in sixth grade not to attend college. 

Not sure Student was not sure whether he or she would attend 

college. 

Hadn't thought about it Student had not thought about college while in the sixth 

grade. 

Father's 1982 after-high-school aspirations for children (FY63A) and mother's 1982 after-highschool aspirations for children (FY63B) 

These variables record the respondent's mother's and father's after-high-school aspirations for 

respondent at the time of the first follow-up survey in 1982. These are student-reported variables. 

71 
Go to college Parent wants sophomore to go to college after high school. 

Full-time job Parent wants sophomore to work full time after high 

school. 

Trade school Parent wants sophomore to go to a trade school after high 

school. 

Military service Parent wants sophomore to go into the military after high 

school. 

Grades in high school (HSGRADES) 

This is primarily a student-reported variable combining data from the base-year and first followup surveys, but it also includes some data from the transcript surveys. The variable categories are 

described both as letter grades (e.g., mostly As) and as their numerical equivalents on a 100-point 

scale. 

Mostly As (90–100) 

Half As and Half Bs (85–89) 

Mostly Bs (80–84) 

Half Bs and half Cs (75–79) 

Mostly Cs (70–74) 

Half Cs and half Ds (65–69) 

Mostly Ds (60–64) 

High school diploma type (HSDIPLOM) 

Regular diploma Student received a high school diploma, and either 

graduated early or on time (June 1982). 

Returned for diploma Student stopped out at some point during high school or did 

not graduate on time, but returned to high school to finish 

their diploma or general equivalency diploma (GED). 

Returned but no diploma Student stopped out at some point during high school or did 

not graduate on time, returned to high school at a later time, 

but did not complete a diploma or GED. 

Never returned Student dropped out of high school and did not complete a 

diploma or GED at a later time. 

72 
Program in high school 

General Students reported that their high school program was 

neither vocational nor academic. 

Academic Students reported that their high school program was 

academic. 

Vocational Students reported that their high school program was 

vocational. 

Repeated grade/held back (FY59) 

Never repeated Student did not report repeating a grade or being held back 

a term at some time between the first and ninth grades. 

Repeated grade Student reported repeating a grade or being held back a 

term at some time between the first and ninth grades. 

Test score composite 1982 (FUTEST) 

FUTEST in the Fourth Followup is a percentile composite based on the variable FUTEST from 

the First Followup in 1982. Originally, this variable was coded as a standard normal variable with 

a zero mean and a variance of 1, and was a composite score based on the average non-missing 

reading, vocabulary, and mathematics (part 1) test scores. The original standardized test score 

composite was converted to a percentile format by ranking students on an index that ranged from 

1 to 100. Two versions of this variable were used in this report: as mean column values for 

groups defined in the rows (table 1.1); and as a row variable with the following format: 

Low quartile Students whose percentile rank ranged from 1 to 25 

percent. 

Middle two quartiles Students whose percentile rank ranged from 26 to 75 

percent. 

High quartile Students whose percentile rank ranged from 76 to 100 

percent. 

Demographic and Status Variables 

Family income in 1980 (FAMINC) 

Family income is based on sophomore- and parent-reported data from the base year survey. This 

variable was recoded from earlier surveys for inclusion in the HS&B Fourth Followup Data 

Analysis System file. 

Less than $8,000 

$8,000–$14,999 

$15,000–$19,999 

$20,000–$24,999 

73 
$25,000–$29,999 

$30,000–$39,999 

$40,000–$49,999 

$50,000 or more 

Father's occupation in 1980 (BB038) 

Father's occupation is based on data reported by sophomores in the 1980 base year survey. 

Students were asked to describe their father's most recent job and to categorize his occupation 

into one of 16 standard occupational classifications. The job description and classifications were 

reviewed for consistency and recoded where obvious inconsistencies were apparent. 

Clerical Bank teller, bookkeeper, typist, secretary, mail carrier, ticket 

agent. 

Craftsman Baker, automobile mechanic, machinist, painter, plumber, 

telephone installer, carpenter. 

Farmer, farm manager 

Homemaker only 

Laborer Construction worker, car washer, sanitary worker, farm 

laborer. 

Manager, administrator Sales manager, office manager, school administrator, buyer, 

restaurant manager, government official. 

Military Career officer, enlisted man in armed forces. 

Operative Meat cutter, assembler, machine operator, welder, taxicab, 

bus, or truck driver. 

Professional Accountant, artist, registered nurse, engineer, librarian, 

writer, social worker, actor, athlete, politician. Excludes 

school teachers. 

Professional Clergyman, dentist, physician, lawyer, scientist, college 

teacher. 

Proprietor/owner Small business owner, construction contractor, restaurant 

owner. 

Protective services Detective, police officer, security guard, sheriff, fire fighter. 

Sales Salesperson, advertising or insurance agent, real estate 

broker. 

School teacher Elementary or secondary. 

74 
Service Barber, beautician, practical nurse, private household worker, 

janitor, waiter. 

Technical Draftsman, medical and dental technician, computer 

programmer. 

Language spoken at home in 1982 (HOMELANG) 

This is a composite variable created from student-reported data in the base-year language file. 

This file only contains data on students who reported that a non-English language was spoken in 

their home. 

Single non-English language A non-English language is the only language spoken in the 

home. 

Non-English language dominant A non-English language is the predominant language used 

in the home, but English is also spoken. 

Combination of languages More than one language was reported as being spoken in 

the home with no single language being dominant. 

English is the dominant language Composite category that includes students who reported 

more than one language spoken in the home with English 

the predominant language, as well as students who did not 

report any other languages but English. 

Mother worked before elementary school (BB037C), while in elementary school (BB037B), 

while in high school (BB037A) 

Students were asked whether their mothers worked outside of the home at various stages of the 

students' lives. Each of these variables has the same set of row categories. 

Did not work Mother did not work outside of the home. 

Part-time work Mother worked part time outside the home. 

Full-time work Mother worked full time outside the home. 

Occupational aspiration for age 30 in 1982 (FY77A) 

Occupational aspirations are based on data reported by 1980 sophomores in the first follow-up 

survey in 1982. Respondents were asked to describe their job aspirations at age 30 and to 

categorize this occupation into one of 16 standard occupational classifications. The job 

description and classifications were reviewed for consistency and recoded where obvious 

inconsistencies were apparent. 

Clerical Bank teller, bookkeeper, typist, secretary, mail carrier, ticket 

agent. 

Craftsman Baker, automobile mechanic, machinist, painter, plumber, 

telephone installer, carpenter. 

75 
Farmer, farm manager 

Homemaker only 

Laborer Construction worker, car washer, sanitary worker, farm 

laborer. 

Manager, administrator Sales manager, office manager, school administrator, buyer, 

restaurant manager, government official. 

Military Career officer, enlisted man in armed forces. 

Operative Meat cutter, assembler, machine operator, welder, taxicab, 

bus, or truck driver. 

Professional Accountant, artist, registered nurse, engineer, librarian, 

writer, social worker, actor, athlete, politician. Excludes 

school teachers. 

Professional Clergyman, dentist, physician, lawyer, scientist, college 

teacher. 

Proprietor/owner Small business owner, construction contractor, restaurant 

owner. 

Protective services Detective, police officer, security guard, sheriff, fire fighter. 

Sales Salesperson, advertising or insurance agent, real estate 

broker. 

School teacher Elementary or secondary. 

Service Barber, beautician, practical nurse, private household worker, 

janitor, waiter. 

Technical Draftsman, medical and dental technician, computer 

programmer. 

Parents' educational attainment in 1980 (PAREDUC) 

PAREDUC is a composite variable that records the higher level of educational attainment for the 

respondent's father or mother. The variable is based on student-reported data on the base-year and 

first follow up surveys. 

No high school diploma 

High school graduate 

Vocational/technical 

Neither of the student's parents had completed a high 

school diploma as of 1980. 

One or both of the student's parents had completed a high 

school diploma by 1980. 

One or both of the student's parents had earned a 

vocational/technical degree, diploma, or certificate. 

76 
Some college One or both of the student's parents had completed one or 

more years of college. One or both parents may have also 

completed a postsecondary degree less than a bachelor's 

degree other than a vocational-technical certificate. 

Bachelor's degree One or both of the student's parents had completed a 

bachelor's degree or bachelor's degree plus a fifth year 

certificate (such as a teaching credential). 

Advanced degree One or both of the student's parents had completed a 

master's degree, professional degree, or doctorate. 

Political beliefs in 1980 (BB094) 

Student-reported political beliefs in the base-year survey. 

Popularity in 1982 (FY74A) 

Very popular Student believes self to be very popular with peers. 

Somewhat popular Student believes self to be somewhat popular with peers. 

Not at all popular Student believes self to be not at all popular with peers. 

Race–ethnicity (RACE4) 

This is a composite variable that draws upon information from the fourth follow-up and from 

earlier surveys. Two versions of this variable appear in the tables of this report, but the only 

difference between these variables is that one version distinguishes among Hispanics by their 

country of origin, while the other version has a single Hispanic category. 

Native American/Alaska Native A person having origins in any of the original peoples of 

North America and who maintains cultural identification 

through tribal affiliation or community recognition. 

Asian/Pacific Islander A person having origins in any of the Pacific Islander 

original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the Indian 

Subcontinent, or Pacific Islands. This includes people from 

China, Japan, Korea, the Philippine Islands, Samoa, India, 

and Vietnam. 

Black, non-Hispanic A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of 

Africa, except those of Hispanic origin. 

White, non-Hispanic A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the 

Europe, North Africa, or the Middle East (except those of 

Hispanic origin). 

Hispanic A person of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South 

American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of 

race. The four Hispanic subgroups that are shown separately 

in some of the tables are Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, and 

other. 

77 
Religious background (BB091) 

Student reported religious background in the base-year survey. 

Self-concept (FYCONCPT), Locus-of control (FYLOCUS), and Community orientation 

(FYCOMMUN) 

These three variables are scalar measures of 1980 high school sophomores' self-concepts, sense 

of control over their lives, and attitudes about the importance of community, respectively. Each 

of these scale variables is a composite measure of a series of questions administered during the 

First Followup in 1982. These variables were originally coded as standard normal distribution 

with a zero mean and a variance of 1, but were converted to a percentile format for the Fourth 

Followup by ranking students' scores on an index that ranged from 1 to 100. These variables are 

reported only as mean column values for groups defined in the rows. 

Sex (SEX) 

Male 

Female 

Socioeconomic status (SES) composite 1980 (BYSES) 

BYSES in the Fourth Followup is a percentile composite based on the variable BYSES from the 

1980 base year file. Originally, this variable was coded as a standard normal variable with a zero 

mean and a variance of 1, and was a composite score based on the average non-missing values for 

father's occupation, father's education, mother's education, family income, and material possessions 

in the home. The original standardized test score composite was converted to a percentile format 

by ranking students on an index that ranged from 1 to 100. Two versions of this variable were 

used in this report: as mean column values for groups defined in the rows (table 1.1); and as a 

row variable with the following format: 

Low quartile Students whose percentile rank ranged from 1 to 25 

percent. 

Middle two quartiles Students whose percentile rank ranged from 26 to 75 

percent. 

High quartile Students whose percentile rank ranged from 76 to 100 

percent. 

Time watching TV (weekdays) in 1982 (FY61) 

Student-reported number of hours of TV on weekdays in 1982. 

78 
Values cited as “important” by 1980 high school sophomores in 1992 

Respondents were asked whether they valued the following (yes or no): 

Providing their children with better opportunities than they had (VALUOPPR) 

Money (VALUMONY) 

Steady work (VALUSTED) 

Strong friendships (VALUFRND) 

Success in their work (VALUWORK) 

Employment Variables 

Real earnings in first year after terminating education (RELERNA1) 

In order to facilitate comparisons of earnings across different levels of degree attainment and the 

year in which 1980 sophomores terminated their education, real earnings have been recorded for 

respondents both in relation to the timing of their highest degree attained and also in relation to 

their last enrollment in postsecondary education. Real earnings are reported in 1992 dollars, and 

nominal earnings were adjusted using the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Real earnings data are 

stored as continuous variables in the HS&B Fourth Followup Data Analysis System files. 

Real earnings in third year after terminating education (RELERNA3) 

See description of real earnings in first year after terminating education (RELERNA1) for 

explanation of this variable. 

Earnings in 1991 (Y4301B9) 

Earnings are stored as a continuous variable. Earnings were reported by respondents on an annual 

basis from 1983 through 1991. 

Employment status February 1992 (EMST9202) 

The HS&B Data Analysis System files contain a monthly employment status variable for each 

respondent from January 1986 through June 1992, although missing data are a problem for the 

months after February 1992. Each monthly employment status variable includes four categories. 

Working Employed in the month specified either full time or part 

time. 

Unemployed, receiving benefits Unemployed in the month specified and receiving 

unemployment benefits. 

Unemployed, not receiving 

benefits Unemployed in the month specified, but not receiving any 

unemployment benefits. 

Out of the labor force Not employed for pay outside of the home. This category 

79 
also includes discouraged workers who are not looking for 

work. 

Industry of Employment in 1992 (Y4303CA) 

Agriculture Includes also forestry and fisheries (private only). 

Mining 

Construction Examples include building trades such as carpenters and 

electricians. 

Manufacturing–durable goods 

Manufacturing–non-durable goods 

Public utilities Examples include transportation, communications, and 

organizations like the U.S. Postal Service, Federal Express, 

and travel agents. 

Wholesale trade 

Retail trade 

Finance Also includes insurance and real estate. 

Business and repair services Examples include industries such as auto repair, business 

agents, public relations, advertising, and photo developing. 

Personal services Examples include cleaners, beauty shops, funeral homes, 

hotels and restaurants, and domestics. 

Recreation services Examples include entertainment and recreation, amusement 

parks, bowling alleys, and theaters. 

Professional services Examples include public and private hospitals, schools, 

social services, health practitioners such as doctors, dentists, 

nurses, and chiropractors. 

Public administration 

Occupation of employment in 1992 (Y4303FA) 

The occupation variable contains 29 categories, not all of which are shown in the tables of this 

report. These 29 categories can be collapsed to the 16 standard Dictionary of Occupational Titles 

(DOT) categories that were used to record father's, mother's, and respondent's occupation in 

earlier surveys. The full 29 categories are shown here. 

Clerical, secretarial Secretary, typist, file clerk, receptionist, word processor. 

Clerical, financial Bookkeeper, bank teller. 

Clerical, other Ticket agent, mail carrier, meter reader, shipping and 

80 
Craftsperson 

Farmer/farm manager 

Homemaker 

Laborer 

Manager/administrator– 

sales/purchasing 

Manager/administrator– 

government 

Manager/administrator– 

retail, hospitality 

Manager/administrator– 

manufacturing, construction 

Manager/administrator– 

other 

Skilled operative 

Professional–arts/ 

entertainment/media 

Professional–medical 

Professional–engineer 

Professional–physician 

Professional–legal 

Professional–other 

Proprietor/owner–retail/ 

hospitality 

receiving, telephone operator, library clerk, office machine 

operator, messenger, dispatcher. 

Baker, auto mechanic, machinist, plumber, house painter, 

carpenter, brick mason, telephone installer, other 

unspecified mechanics, tile setter, carpet installer, roofer. 

No other outside job. 

Construction worker, car washer, sanitary worker, farm 

laborer, machine cleaner, stock handler, bagger, loader, 

stevedore, tradesperson's helper, gas station attendant, 

handyperson. 

Sales manager, buyer. 

Local, state, or federal. 

Store, restaurant, hotel, etc. 

Line supervisor, etc. 

Truck driver, assembler, machine operator, welder, inspector, 

bus driver, forklift operator, train engineer, cab driver, 

chauffeur, sewing machine operator, printing press operator. 

Actor, artist, writer, athlete, designer, editor, disc jockey, 

publicist, photographer. 

Nurse, social worker. Excludes physicians. 

Clergyman, scientist, college professor, other 

postsecondary teacher, psychologist, accountant. 

Store, restaurant, hotel, motel. 

81 
Proprietor/owner–manufacturing 

and construction 

Proprietor/owner–other 

Protective services 

Sales 

School teacher 

Service 

Technical–computer related 

Technical–noncomputer related 

Other Variables 

Construction contractor. 

Detective, police, fire fighter, security guard, crossing 

guard, FBI agent. 

Salesperson, advertising or insurance agent, real estate 

broker, counter held, cashier. 

Elementary or secondary. 

Barber, beautician, janitor, waitperson, practical nurse, 

nurse's aide, maid, orderly, cook, kitchen help, 

exterminator, flight attendant. 

Programmer, computer technician, systems analyst. 

Draftsperson, medical/dental technician. 

Activities in week prior to survey in June 1992 (Y4103A–Y4103K) 

Students were asked to describe their major activities in the week prior to being surveyed in 

June 1992. 

Working 

Looking for work 

On temporary layoff 

Taking vocational/technical courses 

Taking undergraduate/academic courses 

Taking graduate/professional courses 

In apprenticeship or training program 

On active duty in the armed forces 

Keeping house 

Taking a break 

Other 

Community lived in February 1982 (FY100) 

82 
This variable is a student-reported measure of the degree of urbanization of the community in 

which the student lived in February 1982. 

Rural/farm A rural or farming community. 

Small city A small city or town of fewer than 50,000 people that is not 

a suburb of a larger place. 

Medium city A city of between 50,000 and 100,000 residents. 

Suburb, medium city A suburb of a medium-sized city. 

Large city A city of 100,000 to 500,000 people. 

Suburb, large city A suburb of a large city. 

Huge city A city with more than 500,000 people. 

Suburb, huge city A suburb of a huge city. 

Military base A military base or station. 

Marital Status in June 1992 (MARST92) 

Married Respondent was married in June 1992. 

Separated Respondent was separated from spouse in June 1992. 

Divorced Respondent had been married but was divorced in June 

1992. 

Widowed Respondent had been married but the spouse died sometime 

before June 1992. 

Never married Respondent had never been married. 

Living in a marriage-like 

relationship Respondent reported living with a partner but not being 

married. 

Marital and parental status in 1992 (FMFRM92) 

Married, no children 

Married, with children 

Divorced/separated/widowed, no children 

Never married, no children 

Never married, with children 

83 
Living together, no children 

Living together, with children 

Number of marriages (TMSMAR92) 

Stored as a continuous variable on the HS&B Fourth Followup Data Analysis System files. 

Urbanicity of high school area (HSURBAN) 

This variable classifies the community where the respondent's high school was located according 

to the CIC urbanization code. 

Urban Urban or central city. 

Suburban Suburban, in SMSA but not in central city. 

Rural Rural, or not in SMSA 

Volunteer activities in 1992 (Y4502A–Y4502J) 

The 1980 high school sophomores were asked to describe any volunteer activities in which they 

had been engaged in the year prior to being surveyed. 

Any volunteer groups or organizations (yes/no) 

Youth organizations such as little league coach, scout leader, etc. 

Union, farm, trade, or professional associations 

Political clubs or organizations 

Organized volunteer work such as in a hospital 

Sports teams or clubs 

Educational organizations such as PTA or academic group 

Service clubs such as Rotary, Chamber of Commerce, Veterans, Lions, Kiwanis, Elks, etc. 

Other volunteer groups 

Voting indicators 

Registered in 1986 (TY56) 

Registered in 1992 (Y4503) 

Voted in presidential election in 1984 (TY58) 

Voted in non-presidential local, state or national elections in 1988 (Y4504) 

Voted in presidential election in 1988 (Y4505) 

84 
Appendix B: Technical Notes 

88 
Appendix B 

Technical Notes 

The High School and Beyond Fourth Followup 

The High School and Beyond (HS&B) survey began in the spring of 1980 with the 

collection of base year questionnaire and test data on over 58,000 high school seniors and 

sophomores. The first followup survey was conducted in the spring of 1982, the second 

followup in the spring of 1984, the third followup in the spring of 1986, and the fourth 

followup in the spring of 1992. 

The HS&B Fourth Followup Survey is the fifth wave of the longitudinal study, but 

unlike previous rounds, the fourth followup focused exclusively on a sophomore class. The 

Fourth Followup included two components: a respondent survey with sample of 14,825 

members of the 1980 sophomore cohort, and a transcript study based on the 9,064 sophomore 

cohort members who reported postsecondary attendance. The goals of the fourth followup 

were to obtain information on issues of access to and choice of undergraduate and graduate 

educational institutions, persistence in attaining educational goals and progress through the 

curriculum, rates of degree attainment and of other educational outcomes, and labor market 

outcomes in relation to educational attainment and labor market experiences. 

Sample design. In the base year, students were selected using a two-stage, stratified 

probability sample design with schools as the first-stage units and students within schools as 

the second-stage units.14 The total number of schools selected for the sample was 1,122, 

from a frame of 24,725 schools with grades 10 or 12 or both. Within each stratum schools 

were selected with probabilities proportional to the estimated enrollment in their 10th and 

12th grades. Within each school, 36 seniors and 36 sophomores were randomly selected. In 

those schools with fewer than 36 seniors or 36 sophomores, all eligible students were drawn 

in the sample. 

The first follow-up sophomore and senior cohort samples were based on the HS&B base 

year samples, retaining the essential features of a stratified multi-stage design (for further 

details see Tourangeau, et al., 1983).15 Subsequent to the first followup survey, high school 

transcripts were sought for a probability subsample of nearly 18,500 members of the 1980 

sophomore cohort. The subsampling plan for the Transcript Study emphasized the retention of 

members of subgroups of special relevance for education policy analysis. Compared to the 

base year and first followup surveys, the Transcript Study sample design further increased the 

overrepresentation of racial and ethnic minorities (especially those with above average HS&B 

achievement test scores), students who attended private high schools, school dropouts, 

14For further details on the base year sample design see Frankel, M.; Kohnke, L.; Buonanno, D.; and Tourangeau, R. 

(1981), High School and Beyond Sample Design Report. Chicago: National Opinion Research Center. 

15Tourangeau, R; McWilliams, H.; Jones, C.; Frankel, M.; and O’Brien, F. (1983), High School and Beyond First 

Follow-Up (1982) Sample Design Report. Chicago: National Opinion Research Center. 

89 
transfers and early graduates, and students whose parents participated in the base year 

Parent’s Survey on financing postsecondary education. 

The samples for the second and third followup surveys of the 1980 sophomore cohort 

were based upon the transcript study design. A total of 14,825 cases were selected from 

among the 18,500 retained for the transcript study. As was the case for the transcript sample, 

the sophomore cohort second and third follow-up samples included disproportionate numbers 

of sample members from policy-relevant subpopulations (e.g., racial and ethnic minorities, 

students from private high schools, high school dropouts, students who planned to pursue 

some type of postsecondary schooling, and so on).16 The members of the senior cohort 

selected into the second follow-up sample consisted exactly of those selected into the first 

follow-up sample. The third followup was the last one conducted for the senior cohort. 

The fourth followup is composed solely of members from the sophomore cohort. The 

members of the sophomore cohort selected into the fourth follow-up sample consisted exactly 

of those selected into the second and third follow-up sample. For any student who ever 

enrolled in postsecondary education, complete transcript information was requested from the 

institutions indicated by the student. 

Sample weights. The general purpose of weighting is to compensate for the unequal 

probability of selection into the sample, and to adjust for respondent nonresponse to the 

survey. The weights are based on the inverse of the selection probabilities at each stage of the 

sample selection process and on nonresponse adjustment factors computed within weighting 

cells. The fourth followup had two major components, the collection of survey data and the 

collection of postsecondary transcript data. Nonresponse occurred during both of these data 

collection phases. Weights were computed to account for nonresponse during either phase. 

For the survey data, two weights were computed. The first weight (FU4WT) was computed 

for all fourth follow-up respondents. The second weight (PANEL5WT) was computed for all 

fourth follow-up respondents who also participated in the base year and first, second and third 

followup surveys. For more information about the design and implementation of the survey 

weights, see the High School and Beyond Fourth Followup Methodology Report.17 

Accuracy of Estimates 

The estimates in this report are derived from samples and are subject to two broad 

classes of error—sampling and nonsampling error. Sampling errors occur because the data are 

collected from a sample of a population rather than from the entire population. Estimates 

based on a sample will differ somewhat from the values that would have been obtained from 

a universe survey using the same instruments, instructions, and procedures. Nonsampling 

16See Tables 2.4-1 through 2.4-4 of C. Jones and B. D. Spencer (1985), High School and Beyond Second Follow-Up 

(1984) Sample Design Report. Chicago: National Opinion Research Center. 17Zahs, Pedlow, Morrissey, Marnell, and Nichols, The High School and Beyond Fourth Follow-Up Methodology 

Report (U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Postsecondary Longitudinal Studies 

Branch, 1994), Section 3. 

90 
errors come from a variety of sources and affect universe surveys as well as sample surveys. 

Examples of sources of nonsampling error include design, reporting, and processing errors 

and errors due to nonresponse. The effects of nonsampling errors are more difficult to 

evaluate than those that result from sampling variability. As much as possible, procedures are 

built into surveys in order to minimize nonsampling errors. 

The standard error is a measure of the variability due to sampling when estimating a 

parameter. It indicates how much variance there is in the population of possible estimates of a 

parameter for a given sample size. Standard errors can be used as a measure of the precision 

expected from a particular sample. The probability that a complete census would differ from 

the sample by less than the standard error is about 68 out of 100. The chances that the 

difference would be less than 1.65 times the standard error are about 90 out of 100; that the 

difference would be less than 1.96 times the standard error, about 95 out of 100. Selected 

standard errors are presented in table B.1, and standard errors for the essay tables are 

presented in appendix C. 

Data Analysis System 

The estimates presented in this report were produced using the NCES Data Analysis 

System (DAS) for the HS&B Fourth Followup. The DAS software makes it possible for users 

to specify and generate their own tables from the HS&B data. With the DAS, users can 

recreate or expand upon the tables presented in this report. In addition to the table estimates, 

the DAS calculates appropriate standard errors and weighted sample sizes for the estimates.18 

For example, table B.1 presents the standard errors that correspond to table 1.1 in the table 

compendium. If the number of valid cases is too small to produce an estimate, the DAS prints 

the message “low-N” instead of the estimate (converted to a “—” in the Compendium tables). 

In addition to the tables, the DAS will also produce a correlation matrix of selected 

variables that can be used in linear regression models, and the design effects (DEFT) for all 

the parameter estimates in the correlation matrix. Since statistical procedures generally 

compute regression coefficients based on simple random sample assumptions, the standard 

errors must be adjusted with the design effects to take into account the complex sampling 

procedures used in the HS&B surveys. 

18The HS&B sample is not a simple random sample, and techniques for estimating standard errors that are 

appropriate for simple random samples will not produce accurate standard errors for these data. The DAS takes into 

account the complex sampling procedures and calculates standard errors that are appropriate for such samples. The 

method for computing sampling errors used by the DAS involves approximating the estimator by the linear terms of 

a Taylor series expansion. This procedure is typically referred to as the Taylor series method. 

91 
For more information about the 1992 HS&B Fourth Followup DAS, contact: 

Aurora D'Amico 

NCES Longitudinal Studies Branch 

555 New Jersey Ave., N.W. 

Washington, D.C., 20208-5652 

(202) 219-1365 

Internet address: ADAMICO@INET.ED.GOV 

Methodology and Statistical Procedures 

The comparisons in the text have all been tested for statistical significance to ensure that 

the differences are larger than those that might be expected due to sampling variation. Three 

types of comparisons have been made in the text. 

Differences in two estimated percentages. The Student's t statistic was used to test the 

likelihood that the differences between two percentages were larger than would be expected 

due to sampling error. The Student's t values can be computed for comparisons using the 

estimates in these tables with the following formula: 

where P1 and P2 are the estimates to be compared and se1 and se2 are their corresponding 

standard errors. This formula is only valid for independent estimates. When estimates are not 

independent (for example, when comparing the percentages within a percent distribution—in 

this report, within a row in a table), a covariance term was added to the denominator of the 

t-test formula. 

There are hazards in reporting statistical tests for each comparison. First, large t-values 

may appear to merit special attention. However, the magnitude of the t-statistic is related not 

only to the observed differences in means or percentages, but also to the number of students in 

the categories that are being compared. A small difference compared across a large number of 

students will produce a large t-statistic. 

Second, as the number of comparisons on the same set of data increases, the likelihood 

that the t value for at least one of the comparisons will exceed 1.96 simply due to sampling 

error increases. For a single comparison, there is a 5 percent chance that the t value will exceed 

1.96 due to sampling error. For five tests, the risk of getting at least one t value that high 

increases to 23 percent, and for 20 comparisons, it increases to 64 percent. 

One way to compensate for this danger when making multiple comparisons is to adjust 

the critical value that the t-statistic must equal or exceed to take into account the number of 

comparisons being made. This is done using a Bonferroni adjustment to control for the number 

92 
of possible comparisons—the family of comparisons—between the categories of the variable 

being tested. Family size, k, is calculated as follows: k = [j * (j - 1)]/2, where j is equal to the 

number of categories in the variable. In a 5-category variable such as parent's education, k 

would be equal to [(5)(5-1)]/2, or 10. The family size is then used to adjust the probability that 

one would incorrectly conclude that two estimates were different because of sampling error. 

Differences between two estimates were only reported when p ≤ 0.05/k, or in the case of 

parents' education, when p ≤ 0.005 (that is, 0.05/10). In order to conclude that two estimates 

were different in this case, the critical value that the t-statistic had to equal or exceed was 2.81, 

which was obtained from a table of t statistics for a two-tailed test. 

Trends. In several instances, pair-wise comparisons proved too cumbersome. For example, 

one would like to say something about the general relationship between the percentage of 1980 

high school sophomores with a postsecondary degree and their parents' level of educational 

attainment. In many cases, not all of the ten possible comparisons are statistically significant, 

even though the data appear to suggest clear trends. In such cases, a weighted least squares 

regression formula was used to test whether the upward trend between parents' attainment and 

the percentage of sophomores with a postsecondary degree was significant, even if all of the 

pair-wise comparisons were not. 

This regression test for linearity was done in this analysis using the data manipulation and 

regression capabilities of the Microsoft EXCEL spreadsheet program. The input data for the 

regressions were the estimates and standard errors in the output tables created by the Data 

Analysis System. All of the variables included in the regression equations were transformed by 

dividing them by the standard error of the relevant proportion. An intercept variable was also 

created by diving a column of 1s by the standard error of the corresponding proportion. The 

new dependent variable was then regressed on the new independent variable and the intercept 

variable. The statistical significance of beta for the independent variable was then evaluated in 

relation p ≤ 0.05, or t ≥ 1.96. One important limitation of this test is that it can only be used to 

assess trends across ordered variables or variable categories. 

Differences in distributions. The third type of test used in this report is the chi-square test, 

which was used to assess whether one distribution was different from another. For example, 

one would like to evaluate the highest level of educational attainment in 1992 of the 1980 

sophomores in relation to their educational expectations in 1982. Even with the advanced 

degree categories (master's, professional, and doctorate) collapsed into a single category, there 

are five levels of postsecondary attainment (none, vocational certificate, associate degree, 

bachelor degree, and advanced degree), and five levels of postsecondary expectations, which 

implies 120 (i.e., 5!) pair-wise comparisons. In this instance, the chi-square test enables one to 

evaluate whether for each level of expectations the attainment distributions are different with a 

single test. 

Once the chi-square value is calculated, it is adjusted by the cell-specific design effects 

(DEFT)—rather than the average DEFT for the whole sample—to take into account the 

complex sample design. These effects were estimated using a Microsoft EXCEL spreadsheet 

93 
model, which is based on work by Rao and Thomas.19 In general, this adjustment reduces the 

value of the chi-square (because complex samples are not as efficient as simple random 

samples of equivalent size). This value is then evaluated in relation to a critical value that is 

obtained from a table for a test with n degrees of freedom and a specified signficance level. In 

this case, the signficance level was set at p ≤ 0.05. The degrees of freedom were calculated as 

the number of row categories minus 1 times the number of column categories minus 1. 

19J.N.K. Rao and D.R. Thomas, “Chi-Squared Tests for Contingency Tables,” in Skinner, Holt, and Smith, Analysis 

of Complex Surveys (New York: Wiley and Sons, 1989), chapter 4. 

94 
Table B.1—Standard errors for Table 1.1: Average percentile rank of 1980 high school 

sophomores in specialized composite scales, by selected characteristics 

Socioeconomic Test Self- Locus of Community 

status scores concept control orientation 

Student characteristics (1980) (1982) (1982) (1982) (1982) 

Total 0.50 0.49 0.40 0.41 0.42 

Sex 

Male 0.60 0.62 0.54 0.59 0.58 

Female 0.62 0.59 0.51 0.51 0.53 

Race–ethnicity 

Native American/Alaska Native 2.07 2.75 2.59 3.49 2.91 

Asian/Pacific Islander 2.45 2.41 1.93 1.50 1.71 

Black 1.04 0.94 1.05 1.26 1.03 

White 0.52 0.49 0.44 0.44 0.42 

Hispanic-Mexican 1.72 1.59 1.67 1.73 1.47 

Hispanic-Cuban 3.78 4.13 2.77 2.89 3.03 

Hispanic-Puerto Rican 2.56 2.42 3.39 2.75 2.47 

Hispanic-other 2.11 1.82 2.36 2.63 2.25 

Family income in 1980 

Less than $8,000 1.25 1.56 1.59 1.57 1.55 

$8,000–$14,999 0.89 1.14 0.93 0.97 0.95 

$15,000–$19,999 0.88 1.05 0.99 0.96 0.99 

$20,000–$24,999 0.92 1.05 0.93 1.05 0.95 

$25,000–$29,999 0.83 0.97 0.91 0.87 0.93 

$30,000–$39,999 0.79 0.93 0.90 0.84 0.99 

$40,000–$49,999 1.07 1.29 1.15 1.12 1.24 

$50,000 or more 0.95 1.27 1.13 1.05 1.11 

Father's occupation in 1980 

Technical 1.00 1.83 1.69 1.68 1.76 

Clerical 1.42 2.33 2.23 2.28 2.34 

Craftsman 0.66 0.94 0.96 0.97 0.98 

Farmer 1.22 1.79 1.72 1.78 1.66 

Laborer 0.83 1.13 1.11 1.19 1.14 

Manager 0.66 1.03 1.05 0.97 1.15 

Military 2.03 2.77 2.94 3.00 2.59 

Operative 0.73 1.00 1.07 1.01 1.06 

Professional 0.93 1.58 1.48 1.41 1.53 

Professional/doctor 0.66 1.43 1.71 1.65 1.82 

Proprietor/owner 0.95 1.40 1.37 1.26 1.40 

Protective service 1.52 2.10 1.87 2.07 2.09 

Sales 1.01 1.51 1.68 1.54 1.69 

School teacher 1.34 3.24 2.99 2.78 3.21 

Service 2.01 2.81 2.85 2.62 2.34 

Program in high school 

General 0.72 0.68 0.74 0.78 0.81 

Academic 0.65 0.58 0.51 0.47 0.53 

Vocational 0.64 0.59 0.67 0.74 0.66 

Urbanicity of high school area 

Urban 1.19 1.35 0.88 1.06 0.94 

Suburb 0.76 0.77 0.57 0.58 0.60 

Rural 0.87 0.76 0.70 0.72 0.77 

95 
Table B.1—Standard errors for Table 1.1: Average percentile rank of 1980 high school 

sophomores in specialized composite scales, by selected characteristics— 

Continued 

Socioeconomic Test Self- Locus of Community 

status scores concept control orientation 

Student characteristics (1980) (1982) (1982) (1982) (1982) 

Community lived in Feb 1982 

Rural/farm 0.78 0.88 0.75 0.76 0.74 

Small city 0.79 0.75 0.65 0.60 0.60 

Medium city 1.03 1.11 0.83 0.89 0.88 

Burb medium city 1.39 1.67 1.10 1.21 1.16 

Large city 1.53 1.51 1.07 1.16 1.09 

Burb large city 1.44 1.44 1.26 1.24 1.28 

Huge city 2.08 2.39 1.57 1.79 1.63 

Burb huge city 1.91 2.12 1.60 1.77 1.61 

Military base 3.37 3.49 2.94 3.54 3.92 

Religious background in 1980 

Baptist 0.87 0.98 0.88 0.94 0.85 

Methodist 1.28 1.25 1.09 1.16 1.30 

Lutheran 1.27 1.41 1.33 1.42 1.36 

Presbyterian 1.82 1.79 1.80 1.82 1.83 

Episcopalian 2.59 2.63 2.30 2.26 2.36 

Other protestant 1.92 1.85 1.94 1.82 1.89 

Catholic 0.72 0.65 0.60 0.60 0.61 

Other Christian 1.42 1.53 1.55 1.49 1.53 

Jewish 3.04 2.47 3.21 3.12 3.35 

Other religion 1.66 1.60 1.55 1.68 1.78 

None 1.61 1.77 1.50 1.52 1.64 

Political beliefs in 1980 

Conservative 1.35 1.53 1.36 1.23 1.33 

Moderate 0.72 0.70 0.67 0.65 0.70 

Liberal 1.08 1.08 1.02 1.05 0.98 

Radical 1.72 1.94 1.63 1.75 1.81 

None 1.24 1.20 1.21 1.31 1.22 

Grades in high school 

Mostly A 90–100 1.61 1.32 1.57 1.31 1.56 

Half A/B 85–89 0.95 0.92 0.88 0.79 0.90 

Mostly B 80–84 0.82 0.77 0.71 0.68 0.71 

Half B/C 75–79 0.73 0.67 0.66 0.63 0.69 

Mostly C 70–74 0.78 0.74 0.77 0.76 0.79 

Half C/D 65–69 1.09 0.91 1.15 1.26 1.26 

Mostly D 60–64 2.43 1.59 2.57 3.52 2.87 

Parents educational attainment by 1980 

High school 0.44 0.59 0.60 0.62 0.64 

Vocational/technical 0.61 0.87 0.82 0.81 0.92 

Some college 0.57 0.81 0.70 0.71 0.76 

Bachelor's degree 0.69 1.11 1.12 1.04 1.11 

Advanced degree 0.76 1.44 1.61 1.38 1.73 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 1980 Sophomore Cohort, 1980–1992. 

96 
Appendix C: Essay Standard Error Tables 

97 
Standard errors for Table 1 

Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree 

attained through 1992, by postsecondary expectations in 1982 

Less than 

Student high school High 

characteristics graduate school 

Highest degree through 1992 

Certi- Assocficate iate's Bachelor's Master's Professional Doctorate 

Total 0.34 0.70 0.43 0.31 0.55 0.20 0.10 0.05 

Postsecondary expectations 

in 1982 

None 1.01 1.25 

Vocational-technical 0.56 1.28 

Less than four-year 

degree 0.35 1.54 

College degree 0.22 1.28 

Advanced degree 0.26 1.41 

0.72 0.42 0.21 0.10 

1.06 0.82 0.46 0.07 

1.12 1.07 1.00 0.31 

0.61 0.58 1.27 0.55 

0.68 0.63 1.46 0.77 

0.00 0.07 

0.00 0.00 

0.12 0.00 

0.22 0.04 

0.50 0.26 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

Standard errors for Table 2 

Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree 

attained through 1992, by immediate versus delayed entry 

Entry status 

High 

school 

Highest degree through 1992 

Certi- Assoc- Advanced 

ficate iate's Bachelor's degree 

Immediate entrants 0.84 0.53 0.56 0.89 0.47 

Delayed entrants 1.41 1.24 0.89 0.76 0.26 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 

Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

98 
Standard errors for Table 3 

Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree 

attained through 1992, by postsecondary expectations in 1982 

among immediate versus delayed entrants 

Highest degree through 1992 

Postsecondary High Certi- Assoc- Advanced 

expectations in 1982 school ficate iate's Bachelor's degree 

Immediate entrants 

None 5.18 4.78 3.63 2.46 0.00 

Vocational-technical 2.48 2.28 2.04 1.21 0.27 

Less than four-year 

degree 1.96 1.41 1.71 1.59 0.59 

College degree 1.24 0.62 0.67 1.41 0.74 

Advanced degree 1.36 0.56 0.7 1.55 1.05 

Delayed entrants 

None 2.68 2.37 1.80 0.86 0.52 

Vocational-technical 2.62 2.33 1.75 0.88 0.00 

Less than four-year 

degree 3.08 2.58 0.90 2.13 0.49 

College degree 3.49 2.53 2.01 2.59 0.79 

Advanced degree 4.48 3.47 2.25 3.44 1.70 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 

Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

99 
Standard errors for Table 4 

Percentage of 1980 high school sophomores by highest degree 

attained through 1992, by timing and intensity of initial 

postsecondary enrollment 

Type of start in 

postsecondary education 

Less than 

high school High 

graduate school 

Highest degree through 1992 

Certi- Assocficate iate's Bachelor's Master's Professional Doctorate 

Total 0.34 0.70 0.43 0.31 0.55 0.20 0.10 0.05 

4-year institution 

Full-time fall 1982 

Part-time fall 1982 

Delayed entry 

2-year institution 

Full-time fall 1982 

Part-time fall 1982 

Delayed entry 

Other institution 

Fall 1982 

Delayed entry 

Other enrollment 

No enrollment 

0.03 0.95 

0.00 4.57 

0.23 2.92 

0.19 1.69 

1.05 2.89 

0.42 1.92 

0.13 2.07 

0.55 2.53 

0.00 0.00 

0.95 0.95 

0.44 0.52 1.10 0.65 

2.75 2.78 4.27 1.76 

1.45 1.67 2.21 1.10 

1.20 1.49 1.50 0.53 

1.90 1.53 2.19 0.50 

1.52 1.27 0.90 0.16 

2.38 2.14 1.76 0.61 

2.75 1.85 0.89 0.07 

2.79 1.83 1.87 0.72 

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 

0.37 0.17 

0.09 0.38 

0.31 0.33 

0.15 0.00 

0.48 0.01 

0.00 0.00 

0.32 0.00 

0.07 0.00 

0.28 0.80 

0.00 0.00 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

100 
Standard errors for Table 5 

Average length of initial delay (in months) among 1980 high school 

sophomores who delayed entry into postsecondary education, 

by highest degree attained through 1992 and type of institution 

Type of 

institution 

Average 

length of 

delay 

(months) 

High 

school 

Average length of delay in months 

by highest degree through 1992 

Certi- Assoc- Advanced 

ficate iate's Bachelor's degree 

Total 0.38 0.68 1.22 0.85 0.18 0.31 

4-year 

2-year public 

1.46 

1.13 

2.23 

1.50 

5.14 

2.87 

4.99 

2.43 

1.55 

2.27 

— 

— 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 

1980–1992 

Standard errors for Table 6 

Average length of initial delay before entering postsecondary 

education (in months) among 1980 high school sophomores, 

by highest degree attained through 1992 and 

postsecondary expectations 

Average Average length of delay in months 

length of by highest degree through 1992 

Postsecondary delay High Certi- Assoc- Advanced 

expectations (1982) (months) school ficate iate's Bachelor's degree 

Total 0.38 0.68 1.22 0.85 0.18 0.31 

None 1.66 2.24 3.15 4.67 — — 

Vocational-technical 1.01 1.44 1.98 1.80 1.89 — 

Less than four-year 

degree 0.72 1.33 1.76 0.84 0.61 1.36 

College degree 0.47 1.12 2.71 1.82 0.15 0.44 

Advanced degree 0.33 1.05 1.08 1.83 0.26 0.36 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 

1980–1992 

101 
Standard errors for Table 7 

Average length of initial delay before entering postsecondary 

education (in months) among 1980 high school sophomores, 

by highest degree attained through 1992, socioeconomic 

status quartile, and test score quartile 

Average Average length of delay in months 

length of by highest degree through 1992 

Student delay High Certi- Assoc- Advanced 

characteristic (months) school ficate iate's Bachelor's degree 

Total 0.38 0.68 1.22 0.85 0.18 0.31 

Socioeconomic status 

Low quartile 1.13 1.60 2.69 2.46 1.10 — 

Middle two quartiles 0.49 0.94 1.29 0.97 0.26 0.38 

High quartile 0.36 0.96 2.01 1.28 0.20 0.39 

Test score composite (1982) 

Low quartile 1.44 1.79 3.07 2.72 1.91 — 

Middle two quartiles 0.49 0.82 1.43 0.96 0.34 0.60 

High quartile 0.33 1.14 2.26 1.02 0.18 0.19 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: Sophomore Cohort 

1980–1992 

102 
Standard errors for Table 8 

Average number of months between first enrollment and 

attainment of degrees, by type of degree, postsecondary 

expectations, and timing and intensity of initial 

postsecondary enrollment 

Postsecondary education Certi- Assoccharacteristics ficate iate's Bachelor's 

Total 1.07 0.89 0.44 

Postsecondary expectations 

None 1.83 2.98 — 

Vocational-technical 1.37 1.50 3.93 

Less than 4-year degree 3.05 1.50 1.54 

College degree 2.61 1.75 0.63 

Advanced degree 3.23 2.50 0.55 

Type of start in postsecondary 

education 

4-year institution 

Full-time fall 1982 2.77 2.25 0.43 

Part-time fall 1982 — — 4.28 

Delayed entry 5.39 5.75 1.74 

2-year institution 

Full-time fall 1982 3.54 1.21 1.51 

Part-time fall 1982 4.82 4.51 3.55 

Delayed entry 3.46 2.90 3.78 

Other institution 

Fall 1982 1.75 2.16 2.18 

Delayed entry 1.52 2.94 — 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 

Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

103 
Standard errors for Table 9 

Average number of postsecondary institutions attended 

by highest degree attained through 1992, by timing and 

intensity of initial postsecondary enrollment 

Type of start in Certi- Assocpostsecondary education ficate iate's Bachelor's 

Total 0.03 0.03 0.02 

4-year institution 

Full-time fall 1982 0.08 0.09 0.02 

Part-time fall 1982 — — 0.22 

Delayed entry 0.15 0.15 0.07 

2-year institution 

Full-time fall 1982 0.07 0.04 0.06 

Part-time fall 1982 0.12 0.12 0.14 

Delayed entry 0.11 0.09 0.13 

Other institution 

Fall 1982 0.04 0.06 0.12 

Delayed entry 0.04 0.08 — 

—Sample size is too small for a reliable estimate. 

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, High School & Beyond: 

Sophomore Cohort 1980–1992 

104