What does this measure?
The number of residents with a particular level of education in a region, expressed as a percentage of all residents 25 and older.
Why is this important?
An educated population makes a more attractive workforce and is better prepared to instruct the next generation of residents. High educational attainment represents a region's investment in human capital and preparation for long-term growth.
How is our region performing?
In 2015-19, 63% of residents age 25 and older in the region had attended at least some college or earned a bachelor's degree, slightly above the state and national rates (both at 61%). Just 10% of adults in the region lacked a high school diploma, lower than both the statewide (13%) and national (12%) rates, and 33% had their bachelor's degree or higher, compared to 37% statewide and 32% nationally. Regional educational achievement rose from 2000 through 2015-19, with the share of individuals with no high school diploma falling 6 percentage points and the share of individuals with a bachelor's degree or higher increasing 7 points.
Among the individual counties, Ontario and Monroe had the highest rate of adults having attended some college or achieved a bachelor's degree, at 67%. Wyoming and Orleans had the lowest rates, at 50% and 49%, respectively. In the City of Rochester, 54% of residents had attended at least some college, in line with many counties in the region but lagging behind the cities of Batavia (56%) and Geneva (57%), and far lower than the City of Canandaigua, at 71%. Rochester also had the highest share of individuals without a high school diploma, at 20%. However, the percentage of City residents without a high school diploma fell 7 points from 2000.
Notes about the data
The multi-year figures are from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. The bureau combined five years of responses to the survey to provide estimates for smaller geographic areas and increase the precision of its estimates. The survey provides data on characteristics of the population that used to be collected only during the decennial census. Data for this indicator are expected to be released in the fourth quarter.
Bachelor's degree or higher | High school graduate, GED, or alternative | Less than high school diploma | Some college or associate's degree | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
United States | 32% | 27% | 12% | 29% | ||||
NYS | 37% | 26% | 13% | 24% | ||||
NYS (excluding NYC) | 35% | 27% | 10% | 28% | ||||
Region | 33% | 27% | 10% | 30% | ||||
Monroe | 39% | 23% | 10% | 28% | ||||
Surrounding Counties | 25% | 33% | 10% | 32% | ||||
Genesee | 22% | 36% | 8% | 34% | ||||
Livingston | 26% | 32% | 9% | 32% | ||||
Ontario | 36% | 26% | 6% | 31% | ||||
Orleans | 16% | 38% | 12% | 33% | ||||
Seneca | 21% | 35% | 15% | 29% | ||||
Wayne | 23% | 34% | 11% | 33% | ||||
Wyoming | 18% | 40% | 10% | 32% | ||||
Yates | 25% | 33% | 14% | 29% | ||||
Rochester | 25% | 26% | 20% | 29% | ||||
Batavia | 24% | 33% | 11% | 33% | ||||
Canandaigua | 40% | 23% | 6%* | * | 31% | |||
Geneva | 29% | 32% | 11%* | * | 28% |
Notes: Adults are people 25 and older. Multiyear results are from rolling American Community Survey. * Margin of error between 20% & 35% of estimate; ** margin of error between 35% & 50%; *** margin of error greater than 50%.
Bachelor's degree or higher | High school graduate, GED, or alternative | Less than high school diploma | Some college or associate's degree | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
United States | 70,920,162 | 59,472,748 | 26,472,261 | 63,756,905 | ||||
NYS | 4,985,807 | 3,541,274 | 1,796,594 | 3,308,262 | ||||
NYS (excluding NYC) | 2,724,528 | 2,114,690 | 737,742 | 2,119,762 | ||||
Region | 280,354 | 227,182 | 80,835 | 249,318 | ||||
Monroe | 198,049 | 119,716 | 49,395 | 145,516 | ||||
Surrounding Counties | 82,305 | 107,466 | 31,440 | 103,802 | ||||
Genesee | 9,210 | 14,864 | 3,205 | 14,055 | ||||
Livingston | 11,289 | 13,617 | 4,009 | 13,763 | ||||
Ontario | 28,024 | 20,395 | 4,704 | 24,049 | ||||
Orleans | 4,776 | 11,300 | 3,620 | 9,803 | ||||
Seneca | 5,207 | 8,702 | 3,758 | 7,043 | ||||
Wayne | 14,467 | 21,531 | 6,934 | 20,982 | ||||
Wyoming | 5,131 | 11,614 | 2,938 | 9,350 | ||||
Yates | 4,201 | 5,443 | 2,272 | 4,757 | ||||
Rochester | 33,351 | 34,906 | 26,021 | 38,475 | ||||
Batavia | 2,438 | 3,365 | 1,100 | 3,345 | ||||
Canandaigua | 2,901 | 1,708 | 409* | * | 2,293 | |||
Geneva | 2,080 | 2,302 | 807* | * | 2,018 |
Notes: Adults are people 25 and older. Multiyear results are from rolling American Community Survey. * Margin of error between 20% & 35% of estimate; ** margin of error between 35% & 50%; *** margin of error greater than 50%.
Bachelor's degree or higher | High school graduate, GED, or alternative | Less than high school diploma | Some college or associate's degree | |
---|---|---|---|---|
United States | 24% | 29% | 20% | 27% |
NYS | 27% | 28% | 21% | 24% |
NYS (excluding NYC) | 27% | 30% | 16% | 26% |
Region | 26% | 30% | 16% | 28% |
Monroe | 31% | 26% | 15% | 28% |
Surrounding Counties | 18% | 36% | 18% | 28% |
Genesee | 16% | 38% | 16% | 30% |
Livingston | 19% | 34% | 18% | 29% |
Ontario | 25% | 32% | 13% | 31% |
Orleans | 13% | 40% | 24% | 24% |
Seneca | 17% | 36% | 21% | 26% |
Wayne | 17% | 36% | 18% | 29% |
Wyoming | 11% | 39% | 24% | 25% |
Yates | 18% | 36% | 20% | 26% |
Rochester | 20% | 29% | 27% | 24% |
Batavia | 19% | 34% | 20% | 28% |
Canandaigua | 25% | 29% | 15% | 31% |
Geneva | 22% | 31% | 22% | 25% |
Notes: Adults are people 25 and older. Multiyear results are from rolling American Community Survey. * Margin of error between 20% & 35% of estimate; ** margin of error between 35% & 50%; *** margin of error greater than 50%.
Bachelor's degree or higher | High school graduate, GED, or alternative | Less than high school diploma | Some college or associate's degree | |
---|---|---|---|---|
United States | 44,462,605 | 52,168,981 | 35,715,625 | 49,864,428 |
NYS | 3,433,212 | 3,480,768 | 2,626,324 | 3,002,232 |
NYS (excluding NYC) | 1,986,379 | 2,191,433 | 1,163,634 | 1,924,144 |
Region | 204,103 | 233,880 | 127,006 | 218,308 |
Monroe | 148,953 | 124,927 | 72,410 | 131,667 |
Surrounding Counties | 55,150 | 108,953 | 54,596 | 86,641 |
Genesee | 6,533 | 15,301 | 6,244 | 12,047 |
Livingston | 7,715 | 13,557 | 7,078 | 11,731 |
Ontario | 16,430 | 21,017 | 8,406 | 20,686 |
Orleans | 3,766 | 11,519 | 6,846 | 6,912 |
Seneca | 3,948 | 8,053 | 4,727 | 5,857 |
Wayne | 10,513 | 22,316 | 10,954 | 17,948 |
Wyoming | 3,390 | 11,498 | 7,206 | 7,428 |
Yates | 2,855 | 5,692 | 3,135 | 4,032 |
Rochester | 26,723 | 38,008 | 35,796 | 32,180 |
Batavia | 2,041 | 3,703 | 2,214 | 3,057 |
Canandaigua | 1,924 | 2,265 | 1,155 | 2,416 |
Geneva | 1,706 | 2,465 | 1,685 | 1,970 |
Notes: Adults are people 25 and older. Multiyear results are from rolling American Community Survey. * Margin of error between 20% & 35% of estimate; ** margin of error between 35% & 50%; *** margin of error greater than 50%.



INDICATORS - Grouped by Topic | REGIONAL VALUE | YEAR | NYS COMPARISON | TREND | REGION |
---|---|---|---|---|
Prekindergarten Participation | 45% | 2018 |
2
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
School Spending Per Student | $23,807 | 2019 |
1
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
Instructional Spending Per Student | $17,112 | 2019 |
1
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
Students Receiving Special Education Services | 9% | 2019 |
3
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
Grade 3 English | 44% | 2019 |
2
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
Grade 3 English by Student Subgroup | 2019 | 0 | 10 Not Applicable* | |
Grade 3 English by Race/Ethnicity | 2019 | 0 | 10 Not Applicable* | |
Grade 3 Math | 49% | 2019 |
2
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
Grade 3 Math by Student Subgroup | 2019 | 0 | 10 Not Applicable* | |
Grade 3 Math by Race/Ethnicity | 2019 | 0 | 10 Not Applicable* | |
Grade 8 English | 39% | 2019 |
2
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
Grade 8 English by Student Subgroup | 2019 | 0 | 10 Not Applicable* | |
Grade 8 English by Race/Ethnicity | 2019 | 0 | 10 Not Applicable* | |
Grade 8 Math | 49% | 2019 |
2
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
Regents Algebra 1 | 73% | 2019 |
3
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
Regents English | 83% | 2019 |
2
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
Four-Year Cohort Graduation Rate | 88% | 2020 |
3
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
Cohort Graduation Rate, Beyond Four Years | 88% | 2020 |
3
![]() |
1
Increasing
|
Four-Year Cohort Graduation Rate by Race/Ethnicity | 2020 | 0 | 10 Not Applicable* | |
Education Levels of Adults | 2015-19 | 0 | 10 Not Applicable* | |
Education Levels of Adults by Race/Ethnicity | 2015-19 | 0 | 10 Not Applicable* |


