Internet address:  http://stats.bls.gov/newsrels.htm
Technical information:  (202) 691-6378    USDL 01-94

                                          For release:  10:00 A.M. EDT
Media contact:                691-5902    Friday, April 13, 2001


  COLLEGE ENROLLMENT AND WORK ACTIVITY OF YEAR 2000 HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES
                                     
   Sixty-three percent of the high school graduating class of 2000 was
enrolled in colleges or universities in the fall, the Bureau of Labor
Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today.  The college
enrollment rate was virtually the same as a year earlier and was well below
the record high of 67 percent in 1997.
   
   Information on school enrollment and the work activity of high school
graduates comes from an October supplement to the Current Population Survey
(CPS).  The CPS is a monthly nationwide survey of about 50,000 households
that provides information on employment, unemployment, earnings, demographics,
and other characteristics of the civilian noninstitutional population age
16 and over.  See the Technical Note for more information on the October
supplement.
   
 Recent High School Graduates and Dropouts
   
   Among the 2.8 million high school graduates in 2000, 1.7 million
(63.3 percent) were enrolled in college the following October.  The college
enrollment rate of young women, at 66.2 percent, continued to exceed that
of young men, 59.9 percent.  Among race and ethnic groups, a higher propor-
tion of white high school graduates were enrolled in college the following
fall (64.0 percent) than were black (56.2 percent) or Hispanic (53.0 percent)
graduates.  (See table 1.)
   
   Among the members of the year 2000 high school graduating class who
enrolled in college the following fall, two-thirds were attending 4-year
institutions.  Of these students, nearly 40 percent also participated in
the labor force by either working or actively looking for employment.  In
contrast, nearly 65 percent of recent high school graduates enrolled in
2-year institutions were in the labor force.  Among all recent high school
graduates enrolled in college, those who attended part time were much more
likely to participate in the labor force (78.4 percent) than were full-time
college students (43.8 percent).
   
   Four out of every five recent high school graduates not enrolled in
college were in the labor force in October 2000.  The unemployment rate
for this group was 13.1 percent, down from 17.5 percent in October 1999.

   Between October 1999 and October 2000, slightly more than half a million
youths dropped out of high school.  Among these high school dropouts, more
than two-thirds were in the labor force in October 2000.  However,
28.1 percent of these young labor force participants were unemployed--a full
15 percentage points higher than the unemployment rate for recent high school
graduates who were not enrolled in college.  Among high school dropouts, men
were more likely than women to participate in the labor force (74.4 percent
versus 59.4 percent).  The unemployment rate was higher for these young women
(34.2 percent) than for the young men (24.5 percent).

                                  - 2 -

Youth Enrolled in School
   
   Over half of the nation's 34.6 million 16- to 24-year-olds were enrolled
in school in October 2000, with 8.7 million youths in high school and
9.6 million in college.  Among high school students almost 4 in 10 were in
the labor force in October 2000, and their unemployment rate was 12.7 percent.
In comparison, 6 in 10 college students were in the labor force in October
2000, with an unemployment rate of 5.1 percent.  Full-time college students
were less likely to be in the labor force than part-time students, 55.1 versus
88.5 percent.  Among the race and ethnic groups, Hispanic college students
were more likely to participate in the labor force (69.8 percent) than were
whites (63.3 percent) and blacks (50.9 percent).  Conversely, among high
school students, a greater proportion of whites were in the labor force
(42.0 percent) than were blacks (27.2 percent) and Hispanics (25.2 percent).
(See table 2.)                                 

Out-of-School Youth
   
   Four out of five 16- to 24-year-olds not enrolled in school in October
2000 were in the labor force.  Among young persons not enrolled in school,
a greater percentage of whites were in the labor force (84.6 percent) than
were Hispanics (77.0 percent) and blacks (73.2 percent).  Labor force
participation rates were notably higher for men (88.7 percent) than for
women (76.3 percent); however, the unemployment rates were similar,
9.3 percent for men and 9.0 percent for women.  The disparity in labor
force participation between young men and young women is largest among
those who have not completed high school and nearly disappears among college
graduates.
   
   Higher levels of education generally corresponded to lower unemployment
rates.  The unemployment rate for those who had graduated from college was
5.6 percent for men and 3.1 percent for women.  In contrast, those with
less than a high school diploma experienced the highest unemployment rates--
16.3 percent for men and 20.3 percent for women.
Technical Note


    The estimates in this release were obtained from a supplement to the
October 2000 Current Population Survey (CPS), a monthly survey of about
50,000 households which provides information on the labor force,
employment, and unemployment for the nation.  The survey is conducted
monthly for the Bureau of Labor Statistics by the U.S. Census Bureau.  Data
relate to the school enrollment status of persons 16 to 24 years of age in
the civilian noninstitutional population in the calendar week that includes
the 12th of the month.
 
    Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request.  Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral
phone number: 1-800-877-8339.

Reliability of the estimates
 
    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 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 currently
enrolled in a regular school, 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 (or 9 hours of graduate classes) 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 2000 high school graduates and 1999-2000 high school dropouts 16 to 24 years old
     by school enrollment, sex, race, and Hispanic origin, October 2000

     (Numbers in thousands)
                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                     
                                                                       Civilian labor force                          
                                                                                                                     
                                           Civilian                                                           Not in 
                Characteristic             noninsti-           Percent       Employed          Unemployed      labor 
                                           tutional              of                                            force 
                                          population   Total   popula-                                               
                                                                tion     Total  Percent of  Number    Rate           
                                                                                population                           
                                                                                                                     
     Total, 2000 high school graduates...    2,756     1,629    59.1     1,473     53.5       155      9.5     1,127 
                                                                                                                     
       Men...............................    1,251       767    61.3       703     56.2        64      8.3       484 
       Women.............................    1,505       862    57.3       770     51.2        92     10.6       643 
                                                                                                                     
       White.............................    2,219     1,366    61.5     1,260     56.8       105      7.7       854 
       Black.............................      404       193    47.7       159     39.4        33     17.3       212 
       Hispanic origin...................      300       208    69.2       191     63.7        16      7.9        93 
                                                                                                                     
       Enrolled in college...............    1,745       818    46.8       769     44.0        49      6.0       928 
                                                                                                                     
         Enrolled in 2-year college......      589       380    64.5       359     61.0        21      5.5       209 
         Enrolled in 4-year college......    1,156       437    37.8       410     35.4        28      6.4       719 
                                                                                                                     
         Full-time students..............    1,592       697    43.8       650     40.8        48      6.8       895 
         Part-time students..............      154       120    78.4       119     77.6         1      1.1        33 
                                                                                                                     
         Men.............................      749       365    48.7       353     47.1        12      3.3       385 
         Women...........................      996       453    45.5       416     41.8        37      8.2       543 
                                                                                                                     
         White...........................    1,420       695    48.9       660     46.5        35      5.1       725 
         Black...........................      227        84    36.8        78     34.2         6      7.0       143 
         Hispanic origin.................      159       101    63.3        94     59.2         6      6.4        58 
                                                                                                                     
       Not enrolled in college...........    1,010       811    80.3       705     69.7       106     13.1       199 
                                                                                                                     
         Men.............................      501       402    80.1       350     69.8        52     12.9       100 
         Women...........................      509       409    80.4       354     69.6        55     13.4       100 
                                                                                                                     
         White...........................      799       670    83.9       601     75.1        70     10.4       129 
         Black...........................      177       109    61.5        82     46.0        28     25.2        68 
         Hispanic origin.................      141       107    75.8        97     68.8        10      9.3        34 
                                                                                                                     
     Total, 1999-2000 high school                                                                                    
        dropouts(1)......................      515       350    68.0       252     48.9        99     28.1       165 
                                                                                                                     
       Men...............................      295       220    74.4       166     56.2        54     24.5        76 
       Women.............................      220       131    59.4        86     39.1        45     34.2        90 
                                                                                                                     
       White.............................      384       280    73.0       210     54.8        70     24.9       104 
       Black.............................      111        58    51.9        31     27.5        27      (2)        53 
       Hispanic origin...................      101        62    61.1        39     39.0        22      (2)        39 

       1 Data refer to persons who dropped out of school between October 1999 and October 2000.
       2 Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.
       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, sums of individual items may not equal totals.  Data reflect revised population controls
     used in the Current Population Survey effective with January 2000 estimates.

     Table 2.  Labor force status of persons 16 to 24 years old by school enrollment, educational attainment, sex,
     race, and Hispanic origin, October 2000

     (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..........   34,568    22,627    65.5    20,675     59.8      1,952     8.6    11,940 
                                                                                                                    
     Enrolled in school.................   18,313     9,183    50.1     8,457     46.2        726     7.9     9,130 
                                                                                                                    
       Enrolled in high school(1).......    8,720     3,372    38.7     2,944     33.8        428    12.7     5,348 
                                                                                                                    
         Men............................    4,589     1,727    37.6     1,499     32.7        228    13.2     2,863 
         Women..........................    4,130     1,645    39.8     1,445     35.0        200    12.2     2,485 
                                                                                                                    
         White..........................    6,883     2,890    42.0     2,566     37.3        324    11.2     3,993 
         Black..........................    1,395       380    27.2       287     20.5         93    24.6     1,015 
         Hispanic origin................    1,275       321    25.2       254     19.9         68    21.1       954 
                                                                                                                    
       Enrolled in college..............    9,593     5,811    60.6     5,513     57.5        298     5.1     3,782 
                                                                                                                    
         Enrolled in 2-year college.....    2,567     1,846    71.9     1,739     67.7        107     5.8       721 
         Enrolled in 4-year college.....    7,026     3,965    56.4     3,774     53.7        191     4.8     3,062 
                                                                                                                    
         Full-time students.............    8,011     4,411    55.1     4,169     52.0        242     5.5     3,600 
         Part-time students.............    1,582     1,400    88.5     1,344     84.9         56     4.0       182 
                                                                                                                    
         Men............................    4,398     2,615    59.4     2,478     56.3        137     5.2     1,784 
         Women..........................    5,195     3,196    61.5     3,035     58.4        161     5.0     1,999 
                                                                                                                    
         White..........................    7,675     4,861    63.3     4,631     60.3        230     4.7     2,814 
         Black..........................    1,236       628    50.9       585     47.3         44     7.0       607 
         Hispanic origin................      921       643    69.8       615     66.8         28     4.4       278 
                                                                                                                    
     Not enrolled in school.............   16,255    13,444    82.7    12,218     75.2      1,226     9.1     2,810 
       16 to 19 years...................    3,688     2,812    76.3     2,339     63.4        473    16.8       876 
       20 to 24 years...................   12,567    10,632    84.6     9,879     78.6        753     7.1     1,935 
                                                                                                                    
       Men..............................    8,414     7,464    88.7     6,773     80.5        691     9.3       950 
         Less than a high school diploma    2,082     1,684    80.9     1,410     67.7        275    16.3       398 
         High school graduates, no                                                                                  
          college.......................    3,962     3,551    89.6     3,220     81.3        332     9.3       410 
         Less than a bachelor's degree..    1,651     1,533    92.9     1,488     90.1         46     3.0       117 
         College graduates..............      720       695    96.6       656     91.2         39     5.6        25 
                                                                                                                    
       Women............................    7,841     5,980    76.3     5,445     69.4        536     9.0     1,860 
         Less than a high school diploma    1,694       928    54.8       740     43.7        188    20.3       765 
         High school graduates, no                                                                                  
          college.......................    3,389     2,644    78.0     2,412     71.2        231     8.8       745 
         Less than a bachelor's degree..    1,767     1,478    83.7     1,392     78.7         87     5.9       289 
         College graduates..............      991       930    93.9       901     90.9         29     3.1        61 
                                                                                                                    
       White............................   12,996    10,992    84.6    10,175     78.3        817     7.4     2,004 
       Black............................    2,592     1,897    73.2     1,543     59.5        354    18.7       696 
       Hispanic origin..................    3,042     2,344    77.0     2,151     70.7        193     8.2       698 

       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, sums of individual items may not equal totals.  Data reflect revised population controls
     used in the Current Population Survey effective with January 2000 estimates.