2005 College Enrollment and Work Activity of High School Graduates — 2006-03-24

In October 2005, 68.6 percent of high school graduates from the class of 2005 were enrolled in colleges or universities, according to data released today by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. The college enrollment rate for recent high school graduates was a historical high for the series dating back to 1959. Information on school enrollment and work activity is collected monthly in the Current Population Survey (CPS). Each October, a supplement to the basic CPS gathers more detailed information on full-time and part-time enrollment status, level of education, and enrollment status a year earlier. The CPS is a monthly nationwide survey of about 60,000 households that obtains information on employment, unemployment, earnings, demographics, and other characteristics of the civilian noninstitutional population age 16 and over. Additional information about the October supplement is included in the Tech- nical Note.