College-Educated Minorities Report Far Fewer Good-Paying Job Opportunities Than Whites

There’s been some debate on the issue, for sure, but most of the research has been conclusive—you should go to college. As of 2013, according to the Department of Labor, the nationwide unemployment rate for those with just a high school diploma was 7.5 percent. But for those with an associate’s degree, it was 5.4 percent. And for those with a bachelor’s degree, it was even lower: 4.0 percent. Additionally, the department found that Americans with bachelor’s degrees were earning nearly twice the median weekly salaries of those with just high school diplomas—$1,108 versus $651 a week.

And yet, the new Atlantic Media/Siemens State of the City poll indicates that even among just the college educated, there’s a gap: one between the way minorities with college degrees perceive their job prospects, and the way college-educated whites do.