In 2007, about 46 percent of full-time and 81 percent of part-time college students ages 16-24 were employed.

The percentage of full-time college students ages 16-24 who were employed increased from 34 to 52 percent between 1970 and 2000, decreased to 47 percent in 2001, and fluctuated between 46 and 49 percent during the period of 2001 through 2007 (see table A-44-1). In 2007, about 46 percent of full-time college students were employed, a level similar to the percentage of students employed during the early 1990s. The number of hours these students worked per week increased. The percentage of students working at least 20 hours per week increased between 1970 and 2000 and then remained relatively steady through 2007. Specifically, in 1970, some 10 percent of full-time students worked 20-34 hours per week, and 4 percent worked 35 or more hours per week. By comparison, the percentage of these students who worked 20-34 hours per week was 22 percent in 2000 and fluctuated between 21 and 22 percent through 2007 and the percentage of these students who worked 35 or more hours per week was 9 percent in 2000 and fluctuated between 8 and 9 percent through 2007.

In 2007, about 81 percent of part-time college students ages 16-24 were employed. In contrast to the increase among full-time college students, there was no measurable change between 1970 and 2007 in the percentage of part-time college students who were employed. In addition, part-time college students worked fewer hours in 2007 than they did in 1970, with the percentage of students working 35 or more hours per week decreasing from 60 to 46 percent during this period.

The trend in the percentage of full-time college students in public and private 4-year institutions and public 2-year colleges who were employed generally followed the patterns of the overall percentage of full-time college students who were employed between 1990 and 2007. For example, the percentage of full-time students attending public 4-year institutions who were employed increased from 43 percent in 1990 to 51 percent in 2000, decreased to 46 percent in 2001, and fluctuated between 45 and 50 percent during the period of 2001 through 2007. The percentages of students who were employed differed by type of institution. In general, the percentages of students who were employed were higher for those attending public 2-year colleges than the percentages of those attending 4-year institutions for all years of data shown between 1990 and 2007. In addition, the percentages of students who were working while attending public 4-year institutions were higher than the percentages of students attending private 4-year institutions. In 2007, for example, about 54 percent of full-time students attending public 2-year colleges were employed, compared with 45 percent of full-time students attending public 4-year institutions and 39 percent attending private 4-year institutions.

In 2007, the percentage of full-time college students ages 16-24 who were employed differed by sex and race/ethnicity. A higher percentage of female than male full-time students were employed (48 vs. 43 percent) (see table A-44-2). Also, the employment rates of full-time students were higher among White and Hispanic students (48 and 49 percent, respectively) than among Black and Asian students (36 and 29 percent, respectively).

Technical Notes

College includes both 2- and 4-year institutions. College students were classified as attending full time if they were taking at least 12 hours of classes (or at least 9 hours of graduate classes) during an average school week and as part time if they were taking fewer hours. Hours worked per week refers to the number of hours the respondent worked at all jobs during the survey week. For more information on the Current Population Survey (CPS), see supplemental note 2.