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For a growing number of Americans, a good education is the ticket to a better future. College opens doors to better career opportunities, higher earnings and new social connections, among other benefits. But how much schooling one receives also matters to some extent. Generally, the higher the level of education one attains, the more income potential grows and the lower chances of unemployment become.

In this study, WalletHub’s analysts examined the key determinants of a well-educated population: educational attainment, school quality, and achievement gaps between genders and races. We compared all 50 states across 11 total metrics grouped by category. The data set ranges from “percentage of adults aged 25 and older with at least a high school diploma” to “average university quality” to “gender gap in educational attainment.”

Read on for our findings, expert commentary and full methodology. A separate WalletHub analysis identifies the Most & Least Educated Cities.

1. Main Findings
2. Ask the Experts
3. Methodology

Main Findings

Embed on your website<iframe src="//d2e70e9yced57e.cloudfront.net/wallethub/embed/31075/geochart.html" width="556" height="347" frameBorder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> <div style="width:556px;font-size:12px;color:#888;">Source: <a href="http://ift.tt/2jlA6Yk;  

Overall Rank	State	Total Score	‘Educational Attainment’ Rank	‘Quality of Education & Attainment Gap’ Rank
1	Massachusetts	80.65	1	6
2	Maryland	77.06	3	4
3	Colorado	74.24	2	26
4	Connecticut	74.17	4	7
5	Vermont	73.89	5	1
6	New Hampshire	71.25	6	3
7	Virginia	68.42	7	11
8	Minnesota	65.83	8	24
9	Washington	63.80	9	31
10	New Jersey	63.21	10	13
11	Utah	62.72	11	12
12	Oregon	58.16	12	27
13	New York	55.82	17	17
14	Kansas	55.62	14	34
15	Hawaii	55.18	13	43
16	Illinois	54.61	18	23
17	Delaware	53.22	24	2
18	Nebraska	53.06	19	22
19	Montana	53.05	15	50
20	Alaska	52.41	16	47
21	Rhode Island	52.19	23	5
22	Maine	51.57	20	29
23	North Dakota	51.28	22	14
24	Wisconsin	49.25	25	15
25	Wyoming	49.01	21	42
26	Iowa	48.55	27	8
27	Michigan	46.89	26	37
28	Pennsylvania	45.21	29	16
29	California	42.60	33	9
30	Arizona	42.58	32	32
31	Missouri	41.79	31	38
32	South Dakota	41.22	28	49
33	Idaho	40.91	30	46
34	Ohio	40.83	34	21
35	Georgia	40.73	36	19
36	North Carolina	40.00	35	33
37	Florida	39.75	37	28
38	Indiana	34.62	40	10
39	New Mexico	34.56	38	45
40	South Carolina	33.56	39	25
41	Oklahoma	31.86	41	20
42	Texas	30.82	42	18
43	Tennessee	28.38	43	39
44	Alabama	26.01	45	30
45	Nevada	24.93	44	48
46	Kentucky	22.98	46	35
47	Arkansas	19.06	47	36
48	Louisiana	16.72	48	41
49	Mississippi	14.46	49	44
50	West Virginia	11.99	50	40

 

Red States vs. Blue States

 

Ask the Experts

For insight into other matters concerning higher education, we turned to a panel of experts in various disciplines. Click on the panelists’ profiles below to read their bios and thoughts on the following key questions:

1. What's the impact of K-12 school quality on rates of high school completion and later college attendance and completion?
2. What are the most effective ways to combat “brain drain” across state borders?
3. Are highly educated states better able to withstand economic shocks?
4. To what extent should states consider education policy as part of a broader economic development strategy?
5. Are there any downsides to having a highly educated population?

Methodology

In order to determine the most and least educated states in America, WalletHub’s analysts compared the 50 states across two key dimensions, including “Educational Attainment” and “Quality of Education & Attainment Gap.”

We examined those dimensions using 11 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the “most educated.” In certain metrics where women showed an advantage over men and blacks over whites, we gave equal credit to the states with no gender/racial inequality. These metrics were marked accordingly with an asterisk (*).

We then calculated overall scores for each state using its weighted average across all metrics and constructed our final ranking based on the resulting scores.

Educational Attainment - Total Points: 80

• Share of Adults Aged 25 & Older with at Least a High School Diploma: Full Weight (~20.00 Points)
• Share of Adults Aged 25 & Older with at Least Some College Experience or an Associate's Degree: Full Weight (~20.00 Points)
• Share of Adults Aged 25 & Older with at Least a Bachelor's Degree: Full Weight (~20.00 Points)
• Share of Adults Aged 25 & Older with at Least a Graduate or Professional Degree: Full Weight (~20.00 Points)

Quality of Education & Attainment Gap - Total Points: 20

• Quality of Public-School System: Double Weight (~4.44 Points)Note: This metric is based on U.S. News & World Report ’s ranking of public-school systems.
• Average Quality of Universities: Double Weight (~4.44 Points)
• Number of Enrolled Students in Top Universities per Capita: Full Weight (~2.22 Points)Note: This metric is based on U.S. News & World Report’s ranking of America’s top 200 universities.
• Public High School Graduation Rate: Full Weight (~2.22 Points)Note: This metric measures the graduation rate for students who attended high school for four years.
• Public College Graduation Rate: Full Weight (~2.22 Points)Note: This metric measures the graduation rate for students who attended college for four years.
• Racial Gap in Educational Attainment*: Full Weight (~2.22 Points)Note: This metric specifically measures the difference between the percentage of black bachelor’s degree holders and the percentage of their white counterparts.
• Gender Gap in Educational Attainment*: Full Weight (~2.22 Points)Note: This metric specifically measures the difference between the percentage of female bachelor’s degree holders and the percentage of their male counterparts.

 

Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from the U.S. Census Bureau, National Center for Education Statistics, The Chronicle of Higher Education and U.S. News & World Report.

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