College students have higher labor force participation rates than high school students

In October 2024, 21.7 million 16- to 24-year-olds, or 55.5 percent of youth, were enrolled in high school (9.9 million) or in college (11.8 million). College students continued to be about twice as likely as high school students to participate in the labor force (49.2 percent versus 22.3 percent). The labor force participation rate is the proportion of the population that is employed or looking for work.

Participation rates for male and female high school students were similar, at 21.2 percent and 23.5 percent, respectively, in October 2024. Among college students, females had a higher participation rate (52.7 percent) than males (44.8 percent).

By race and ethnicity, the labor force participation rates for White (23.9 percent), Black or African American (15.6 percent), Asian (17.1 percent), and Hispanic (15.8 percent) high school students were considerably lower than their counterparts enrolled in college in October 2024. Among college students, the participation rate was lower for Asian students enrolled in college (37.2 percent) than for their White (51.4 percent), Black (48.3 percent), and Hispanic or Latino (51.8 percent) peers.

In October 2024, 17.4 million people ages 16 to 24 were not enrolled in school. Their labor force participation rate was 78.5 percent. Among youth not enrolled in school in October 2024, young men continued to be more likely than young women to participate in the labor force (80.6 percent, compared with 76.1 percent). Labor force participation rates for these youth were similar by race and Hispanic ethnicity.

These data are from the Current Population Survey. For more information, see “College Enrollment and Work Activity of Recent High School and College Graduates — 2024." People whose ethnicity is Hispanic or Latino may be of any race.