July 21, 2005 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Earnings and educational attainment: second quarter of 2005

Median weekly earnings of the nation's 103.3 million full-time wage and salary workers were $643 in the second quarter of 2005.

[Chart data—TXT]

Full-time workers age 25 and over without a high school diploma had median weekly earnings of $412, compared with $584 for high school graduates (no college) and $996 for college graduates holding at least a bachelor's degree.

Median weekly earnings of women with less than a high school diploma were $343. Women who had only a high school diploma had median weekly earnings of $491, while women who were college graduates (bachelor’s degrees or higher) earned $873.

Men without a high school diploma had median weekly earnings of $456; those with a high school diploma, but no college, earned $654. Men who had at least a bachelor’s degree had median weekly earnings of $1,150.

These data on weekly earnings are from the Current Population Survey. Find more information on earnings in "Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers: Second Quarter 2005" (PDF) (TXT), news release USDL 05-1297.