Four New England States Make Top 10 “Most Educated” in U.S. — See Where RI Ranks

Four New England States Make Top 10 “Most Educated” in U.S. — See Where RI Ranks

Four New England states are among the top ten “most educated” in the U.S. according to a new report released Monday. 

Using 18 metrics, WalletHub examined the “key factors of a well-educated population: educational attainment, school quality and achievement gaps between genders and races.”

"For millions of Americans, a good education is the ticket to a better future. College opens doors to more 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 completes, the higher their income potential and the lower their chances of unemployment become," reports WalletHub.

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"One of the biggest difficulties for education in the past two years has been the COVID-19 pandemic, and colleges currently face the struggle of balancing campus safety with returning to in-person classes. Amid these struggles, some states are able to provide safe, quality education more than others," said the study.

 

Massachusetts #1

According to the analysis — Massachusetts is number one. 

Maryland comes in at number two; Connecticut at three; and Vermont (#5) and New Hampshire (#8) round out New England in the top ten. 

Rhode Island is ranked #15. 

In two key metrics — RI ranked #21 for educational attainment and #11 for quality of education. 

In a recent ranking of cities, the Providence-Warwick metro area ranked #89 out of 150 urban areas for “most educated.” 

In 2021, a Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council report found however that Rhode Island "Comparatively Overspends on Education and Schools Underperform."

 

Key Stats

In the analysis released on Monday, Massachusetts has the highest school system rating, 21.60 percent, which is 24 times higher than in Mississippi and South Dakota, the states with the lowest at 0.90 percent.

Massachusetts has the highest share of bachelor’s degree holders aged 25 and older, 43.70 percent, which is 2.1 times higher than in West Virginia, the state with the lowest at 20.60 percent.

Maine has the lowest racial gap in educational attainment, with the share of black people aged 25 and older holding a bachelor’s degree at 27.47 percent compared to 20.76 percent for their white counterparts, a difference of 6.72 percent favoring black people.

Read the full study here.