College Aspirations on the Rise

I find this chart fascinating. First of all the trend is significant -- the post-secondary-education aspirations of high school students is definitely on the rise, and has been for 15 years. These kids and their parents believe that getting degrees is the ticket to prosperity. The difference between poor kids and more well-off ones isn't surprising, but it sure is interesting. One concern I share with the authors of the report is that although educational aspirations are rising, it's getting more difficult for students to actually finish their degrees:

"Many high school students hold high expectations that are not realized by subsequent attainment. Ten years after these 1990 10th graders stated their expectations, 46 percent had some postsecondary experience but less than a bachelor’s degree (compared with 30 percent who had expected that level), 26 percent had completed a bachelor’s degree (versus 32 percent), and 3 percent had earned a graduate degree (versus 27 percent)."