Internet address:  http://stats.bls.gov/newsrels.htm
Technical information:  (202) 606-6378  USDL 98-171

                                        For release:  10:00 A.M. EDT
Media contact:                606-5902  Friday, May 1, 1998


    COLLEGE ENROLLMENT AND WORK ACTIVITY OF 1997 HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES


     Sixty-seven percent of 1997 high school graduates were enrolled in
colleges or universities in the fall, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the
U. S. Department of Labor reported today.  This proportion has risen by 5
percentage points over the last 2 years, after remaining steady from 1992-95
at about 62 percent.  The college enrollment proportion rose to 65
percent in the fall of 1996.
     
     This information is from a supplement to the October 1997 Current
Population Survey (CPS), a monthly nationwide survey of about 50,000
households that provides the basic data on national employment and
unemployment.  Each October, the CPS includes additional questions on the
school enrollment and high school graduation status of persons 16 to 24
years of age.  For additional information, see the Technical Note.  Some of
the highlights from the October 1997 survey are:
     
     --Young female high school graduates continued to be more likely than
their male counterparts to enter colleges or universities--70.3 percent
compared with 63.5 percent.
     
     --Among out-of-school youth, the unemployment rate for those who had
not graduated from high school was 19.8 percent, compared with 11.1 percent
for those with a high school diploma (no college) and 2.1 percent for
college-degree holders.
     
Recent High School Graduates and Dropouts
     
     Of the 2.8 million youth who graduated from high school in 1997, 1.9
million (67.0 percent) were attending college in October.  Both white and
Hispanic graduates were more likely to be enrolled in college (67.5 and
65.5 percent, respectively) than were blacks (59.6 percent). (See table 1.)
     
     Two-thirds of the new college students were enrolled in 4-year
institutions, and 37.1 percent of them were labor force participants, that
is, they were either working or looking for work.  The remaining one-third
attended 2-year colleges, and 63.2 percent of them were in the labor force.
Part-time college students, including those in 2-year as well as 4-year
institutions, were twice as likely to participate in the labor force as
their full-time counterparts (84.6 and 41.9 percent, respectively).
     
     Four out of five recent high school graduates not enrolled in college
were in the labor force, about the same proportion as the graduates
attending college part time.  The unemployment rate of the non-students,
however, was twice that of the part-time college students (17.1 compared
with 8.3 percent).  The unemployment rate for full-time students was 12.7
percent.

                                  - 2 -

     Over the 12 months ended in October 1997, some half a million young
persons dropped out of high school, about the same number as in the 12-
month period that ended in October 1996.  The labor force participation
rate of high school dropouts (60.2 percent) was considerably below that of
high school graduates not enrolled in college.
     
     Also, the unemployment rate for the dropouts, 25.4 percent, was 8.3
percentage points higher than for high school graduates not enrolled in
college.
     
Youth Enrolled in School
     
     Of the 33 million persons age 16 to 24 in October 1997, 18.1 million
were enrolled in school, including almost 9.4 million in college and nearly
8.8 million in high school and below.  A little over 4 out of 5 of the
college students were enrolled full time, 51.6 percent of whom were labor
force participants.  In contrast, of those who were enrolled part time,
88.0 percent were in the labor force.  The jobless rate for full-time
college students was 7.5 percent, compared with 4.0 percent for part-time
students.  About 40 percent of those enrolled in high school or below were
in the labor force, and their unemployment rate was 15.2 percent.  (See
table 2.)
     
Out-of-School Youth
     
     A total of 14.8 million 16- to 24-year-olds were not enrolled in
school in October 1997.  This is a rather disparate group, ranging from
high school dropouts to college graduates.  Both labor force participation
and unemployment among these young persons were closely associated with
their educational attainment.  For example, 93.6 percent of the young women
and 96.6 percent of the men who had graduated from college were in the
labor force, and their unemployment rates were only around 2 percent.  In
contrast, only half of the young women and about 4 out of 5 of the men who
were high school dropouts were in the job market, and their jobless rates
were 10 times as high as those for young college graduates.  (See table 2.)

Technical Note

     The estimates in this release were obtained from a
supplement to the October 1997 Current Population Survey
(CPS), a monthly survey of about 50,000 households, which
provides the basic information on the labor force,
employment, and unemployment for the nation.  The survey is
conducted monthly for the Bureau of Labor Statistics by the
Bureau of the Census. Data relate to the school enrollment
status of persons 16 to 24 years of age in the civilian
noninstitutional population in the calendar week ended
October 18, 1997.

     Information in this release will be made available to
sensory impaired individuals upon request.  Voice phone:
202-606-STAT; TDD phone: 202-606-5897; TDD message referral
phone number:  1-800-326-2577.

Reliability

     Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both
sampling and nonsampling error.  When a sample, rather than
the entire population, is surveyed, there is a chance that
the sample estimates may differ from the "true" population
values they represent.  The exact difference, or sampling
error, varies depending on the particular sample selected,
and this variability is measured by the standard error of
the estimate.  There is about a 90-percent chance, or level
of confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will
differ by no more than 1.6 standard errors from the "true
population value because of sampling error.  BLS analyses
are generally conducted at the 90-percent level of
confidence.

     The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error.
Nonsampling error can occur for many reasons, including the
failure to sample a segment of the population, inability to
obtain information for all respondents in the sample,
inability or unwillingness of respondents to provide correct
information, and errors made in the collection or processing
of the data.

     For a full discussion of the reliability of data from
the CPS and information on estimating standard errors, see the
"Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error" section of the
February 1994 and subsequent issues of Employment and
Earnings.

Concepts

     The principal concepts used in connection with the
school enrollment series are described briefly below.

     School enrollment. Respondents were asked whether they
were enrolled in a regular school at any time during the
current term or school year, including day or night school
in any type of public, parochial, or other private school.
Regular schooling is that which may advance a person toward
a high school diploma or a college, university, or
professional degree.  Such schools include elementary
schools, junior or senior high schools, and colleges and
universities.  Persons attending special schools, such as
trade schools or business colleges, are not included in the
enrollment figures.  Persons taking classes that do not
require physical presence in school, such as correspondence
courses or other courses of independent study, and persons
attending training courses given directly on the job are
counted only if the credits obtained are towards promotion
in regular school.

     Full-time and part-time enrollment in college.  College
students are classified as attending full time if they were
taking 12 hours of classes or more during an average school
week and as part time if they were taking fewer hours.

     High school graduation status.  Persons who were not
enrolled in school at the time of the survey were asked
whether they had graduated from high school.  Those who had
graduated were asked when they completed their high school
education.  Persons who had not graduated, that is, school
dropouts, were asked when they last attended a regular
school.  Those who were enrolled in college at the time of
the survey also were asked when they graduated from high school.

     Table 1.  Labor force status of 1997 high school graduates and 1996-97 high school dropouts 16 to 24 years old
     by school enrollment, sex, race, and Hispanic origin, October 1997

     (Numbers in thousands)
                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                     
                                                                       Civilian labor force                          
                                                                                                                     
                                           Civilian                                                                  
                                           noninsti-                         Employed          Unemployed     Not in 
                Characteristic             tutional            Percent                                         labor 
                                          population   Total     of                                            force 
                                                               popula-          Percent of           Percent         
                                                                tion     Total  population  Number  of labor         
                                                                                                      force          
                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                     
     Total, 1997 high school graduates...    2,769     1,590    57.4     1,362     49.2       228     14.3     1,179 
                                                                                                                     
       Men...............................    1,354       793    58.6       675     49.8       118     14.9       561 
       Women.............................    1,415       798    56.4       688     48.6       110     13.8       618 
                                                                                                                     
       White.............................    2,228     1,337    60.0     1,168     52.4       169     12.6       891 
       Black.............................      394       193    49.0       140     35.5        53     27.6       201 
       Hispanic origin...................      336       188    56.0       141     41.9        47     25.1       148 
                                                                                                                     
       Enrolled in college...............    1,856       853    46.0       751     40.5       102     11.9     1,003 
                                                                                                                     
         Enrolled in 2-year college......      630       398    63.2       346     54.9        52     13.1       232 
         Enrolled in 4-year college......    1,225       454    37.1       405     33.1        49     10.8       771 
                                                                                                                     
         Full-time students..............    1,680       704    41.9       615     36.6        89     12.7       976 
         Part-time students..............      176       149    84.6       137     77.6        12      8.3        27 
                                                                                                                     
         Men.............................      860       364    42.3       311     36.2        52     14.4       497 
         Women...........................      995       489    49.1       440     44.2        49     10.1       506 
                                                                                                                     
         White...........................    1,504       744    49.5       659     43.8        85     11.4       760 
         Black...........................      235        70    29.9        55     23.4        15      (1)       165 
         Hispanic origin.................      220       101    45.8        80     36.5        21     20.4       119 
                                                                                                                     
       Not enrolled in college...........      913       738    80.7       611     66.9       126     17.1       176 
                                                                                                                     
         Men.............................      493       429    86.9       363     73.7        66     15.3        64 
         Women...........................      420       309    73.5       248     59.0        61     19.7       111 
                                                                                                                     
         White...........................      724       593    81.9       509     70.3        84     14.1       131 
         Black...........................      159       123    77.2        85     53.3        38     31.0        36 
         Hispanic origin.................      116        87    75.4        60     52.3        27     30.7        28 
                                                                                                                     
     Total, 1996-97 high school                                                                                      
        dropouts(2)......................      502       302    60.2       225     44.9        77     25.4       200 
                                                                                                                     
       Men...............................      289       207    71.8       165     57.2        42     20.3        81 
       Women.............................      213        95    44.4        60     28.1        35     36.6       119 
                                                                                                                     
       White.............................      386       250    64.8       199     51.5        51     20.5       136 
       Black.............................       90        41    45.1        18     20.4        22      (1)        49 
       Hispanic origin...................      121        88    73.1        73     60.4        15     17.4        32 

       1 Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.
       2 Data refer to persons who dropped out of school between October 1995 and October 1996.
         NOTE:  Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the
     "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups.
     Because of rounding, sum of individual items may not equal totals.
     Table 2.  Labor force status of persons 16 to 24 years old by school enrollment, educational attainment, sex,
     race, and Hispanic origin, October 1997

     (Numbers in thousands)
                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                    
                                                                      Civilian labor force                          
                                                                                                                    
                                          Civilian                                                                  
                                          noninsti-                         Employed          Unemployed     Not in 
               Characteristic             tutional            Percent                                         labor 
                                         population   Total     of                                            force 
                                                              popula-          Percent of           Percent         
                                                               tion     Total  population  Number  of labor         
                                                                                                     force          
                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                    
         Total, 16 to 24 years..........   32,965    20,993    63.7    18,810     57.1      2,183    10.4    11,972 
                                                                                                                    
     Enrolled in school.................   18,140     8,841    48.7     7,957     43.9        884    10.0     9,299 
                                                                                                                    
       Enrolled in high school(1).......    8,768     3,469    39.6     2,940     33.5        528    15.2     5,299 
                                                                                                                    
         Men............................    4,625     1,885    40.8     1,596     34.5        289    15.3     2,740 
         Women..........................    4,143     1,584    38.2     1,344     32.5        240    15.1     2,559 
                                                                                                                    
         White..........................    6,756     2,951    43.7     2,575     38.1        376    12.7     3,805 
         Black..........................    1,511       406    26.9       278     18.4        128    31.6     1,105 
         Hispanic origin................    1,181       327    27.7       252     21.3         76    23.1       854 
                                                                                                                    
       Enrolled in college..............    9,373     5,372    57.3     5,016     53.5        356     6.6     4,000 
                                                                                                                    
         Enrolled in 2-year college.....    2,541     1,768    69.6     1,615     63.5        153     8.7       773 
         Enrolled in 4-year college.....    6,832     3,604    52.8     3,402     49.8        203     5.6     3,228 
                                                                                                                    
         Full-time students.............    7,906     4,083    51.6     3,778     47.8        304     7.5     3,824 
         Part-time students.............    1,466     1,290    88.0     1,238     84.4         52     4.0       177 
                                                                                                                    
         Men............................    4,434     2,401    54.2     2,179     49.1        222     9.3     2,033 
         Women..........................    4,939     2,971    60.2     2,837     57.5        133     4.5     1,968 
                                                                                                                    
         White..........................    7,620     4,568    59.9     4,287     56.3        281     6.1     3,052 
         Black..........................    1,109       519    46.8       455     41.0         64    12.4       590 
         Hispanic origin................      852       506    59.3       467     54.8         39     7.6       346 
                                                                                                                    
     Not enrolled in school.............   14,825    12,152    82.0    10,853     73.2      1,299    10.7     2,673 
       16 to 19 years...................    3,347     2,431    72.6     2,004     59.9        427    17.6       916 
       20 to 24 years...................   11,478     9,721    84.7     8,849     77.1        871     9.0     1,757 
                                                                                                                    
       Men..............................    7,562     6,726    89.0     5,997     79.3        729    10.8       835 
         Less than a high school diploma    1,970     1,561    79.3     1,283     65.1        278    17.8       409 
         High school graduates, no                                                                                  
        college.........................    3,493     3,193    91.4     2,847     81.5        346    10.8       299 
         Less than a bachelor's degree..    1,510     1,403    92.9     1,309     86.7         94     6.7       108 
         College graduates..............      589       569    96.6       558     94.8         11     1.8        20 
                                                                                                                    
       Women............................    7,263     5,425    74.7     4,856     66.9        570    10.5     1,838 
         Less than a high school diploma    1,654       849    51.3       650     39.3        199    23.5       805 
         High school graduates, no                                                                                  
        college.........................    3,169     2,440    77.0     2,163     68.2        277    11.4       729 
         Less than a bachelor's degree..    1,683     1,428    84.9     1,351     80.3         77     5.4       255 
         College graduates..............      757       709    93.6       692     91.4         16     2.3        48 
                                                                                                                    
       White............................   11,881     9,980    84.0     9,095     76.6        885     8.9     1,901 
       Black............................    2,337     1,710    73.2     1,333     57.0        377    22.1       627 
       Hispanic origin..................    2,627     2,029    77.3     1,731     65.9        298    14.7       597 

       1  Includes a small number of persons enrolled in grades below high school
         NOTE:  Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the
     "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups.
     Because of rounding, sum of individual items may not equal totals.