Table 435.

Participation rate of persons, 17 years old and over, in adult education during the previous 12 months, by selected characteristics of participants: Selected years, 1991 through 2005

Characteristic of participant	Percent taking any program, class, or course										Percent taking specific programs, classes, or courses, 2005												Percent doing informal learning activities for personal interest, 2005
	1991		1995		1999		2001		2005		Basic skills/General Educational Development (GED) classes		English as a second language (ESL) classes		Part-time post- secondary education1		Career or job-related courses		Apprentice programs		Personal-interest courses
1	2		3		4		5		6		7		8		9		10		11		12		13
Total	33.0	(0.68)	40.2	(0.48)	44.5	(0.77)	46.4	(0.55)	44.4	(0.74)	1.3	(0.22)	0.9	(0.17)	5.0	(0.29)	27.0	(0.63)	1.2	(0.18)	21.4	(0.71)	70.5	(0.79)
Sex
Male	32.6	(1.09)	38.2	(0.65)	41.7	(1.15)	43.1	(0.83)	41.0	(1.20)	1.4	(0.41)	0.9	(0.29)	5.0	(0.44)	24.5	(0.99)	1.7	(0.31)	18.3	(1.08)	70.8	(1.10)
Female	33.2	(0.97)	42.1	(0.59)	47.1	(1.02)	49.5	(0.78)	47.5	(1.01)	1.2	(0.19)	0.9	(0.15)	5.1	(0.37)	29.2	(0.95)	0.7	(0.15)	24.2	(0.88)	70.2	(1.03)
Age
17 to 24 years	37.8	(1.46)	47.0	(1.12)	49.9	(2.34)	52.8	(2.04)	52.8	(2.79)	6.0	(1.48)	1.7	(0.61)	11.5	(1.34)	21.3	(2.22)	2.7	(0.76)	26.3	(2.60)	69.2	(2.54)
25 to 29 years	40.0	(2.33)	49.6	(1.31)	56.5	(2.53)	52.9	(2.60)	51.6	(3.82)	1.8	(0.48)	3.3	(1.48)	9.1	(1.50)	29.5	(2.48)	3.2	(1.06)	20.9	(2.78)	66.8	(3.75)
30 to 34 years	37.6	(2.88)	47.3	(1.41)	56.2	(2.57)	53.7	(2.18)	52.7	(2.52)	1.9	(0.66)	1.6	(0.64)	8.4	(1.28)	33.8	(2.71)	2.5	(0.89)	23.2	(2.23)	73.8	(2.22)
35 to 39 years	42.1	(2.71)	47.7	(1.15)	50.1	(2.43)	54.0	(1.71)	48.6	(3.21)	0.4	(0.16)	0.7	(0.26)	6.1	(0.90)	32.6	(3.29)	0.9	(0.36)	20.7	(2.67)	75.5	(2.69)
40 to 44 years	49.2	(3.28)	50.9	(1.15)	50.5	(2.43)	53.5	(1.88)	48.9	(2.43)	0.8	(0.31)	0.6	(0.23)	4.7	(0.77)	34.8	(2.30)	0.9	(0.42)	23.4	(2.29)	71.5	(2.62)
45 to 49 years	40.0	(2.43)	48.7	(1.66)	49.8	(2.69)	55.4	(2.02)	49.0	(2.09)	0.6	(0.30)	0.6	(0.25)	3.2	(0.48)	37.7	(1.83)	0.5	(0.23)	19.3	(1.88)	71.6	(2.52)
50 to 54 years	26.8	(3.31)	42.5	(1.38)	47.2	(2.51)	51.1	(2.22)	46.6	(2.36)	0.2	(0.11)	0.3	(0.15)	4.5	(0.75)	35.2	(2.25)	0.6	(0.28)	20.3	(1.64)	75.6	(1.89)
55 to 59 years	29.0	(3.74)	32.2	(1.66)	38.0	(2.60)	44.1	(1.98)	42.2	(2.78)	0.4	(0.29)	0.4	(0.26)	1.9	(0.43)	31.9	(2.39)	0.3	(0.17)	18.0	(1.63)	69.5	(2.56)
60 to 64 years	17.4	(1.90)	23.7	(1.89)	31.4	(2.83)	30.8	(2.18)	37.9	(3.00)	‡	(†)	0.4	(0.29)	0.9	(0.36)	20.9	(2.07)	0.3	(0.20)	24.1	(2.40)	71.4	(3.04)
65 to 69 years	14.2	(2.97)	18.1	(1.46)	25.4	(2.54)	20.5	(1.74)	26.2	(2.67)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	0.5	(0.22)	8.1	(1.36)	‡	(†)	20.9	(2.41)	67.6	(2.52)
70 years and over	8.6	(1.25)	13.8	(1.09)	15.0	(1.38)	21.7	(1.37)	21.5	(1.44)	0.2	(0.10)	‡	(†)	0.3	(0.23)	4.0	(0.78)	‡	(†)	17.9	(1.33)	62.9	(1.82)
Racial/ethnic group
White	34.1	(0.82)	41.5	(0.54)	44.4	(0.89)	47.4	(0.59)	45.6	(0.84)	0.9	(0.23)	0.2	(0.08)	4.9	(0.35)	29.1	(0.70)	0.9	(0.17)	22.1	(0.87)	73.0	(0.92)
Black	25.9	(2.23)	37.0	(1.45)	46.3	(2.30)	43.3	(1.50)	46.4	(2.81)	1.9	(0.49)	‡	(†)	5.4	(0.97)	27.0	(2.53)	1.5	(0.73)	23.7	(2.11)	65.3	(2.02)
Hispanic	31.4	(2.63)	33.7	(1.18)	41.3	(2.51)	41.7	(2.28)	37.8	(2.43)	2.6	(0.72)	5.6	(1.22)	5.7	(1.55)	16.9	(1.72)	2.2	(0.63)	15.4	(1.75)	57.5	(2.86)
Asian	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	48.3	(5.39)	1.2	(0.65)	2.6	(1.03)	7.6	(2.62)	27.2	(4.70)	‡	(†)	26.5	(5.06)	81.1	(4.10)
Pacific Islander	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)
Asian/Pacific Islander	35.9	(5.55)	39.7	(2.92)	51.1	(4.63)	49.5	(3.81)	†	(†)	†	(†)	†	(†)	†	(†)	†	(†)	†	(†)	†	(†)	†	(†)
American Indian/Alaska Native	29.3	(11.55)	38.8	(4.85)	36.3	(9.16)	50.2	(8.28)	36.3	(10.17)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	4.4	(1.82)	23.0	(8.51)	‡	(†)	13.0	(6.16)	70.6	(9.18)
Two or more races	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	39.4	(4.94)	5.1	(2.17)	‡	(†)	3.2	(1.07)	23.8	(4.06)	1.3	(0.59)	21.0	(4.13)	77.6	(5.28)
Highest level of education
completed
8th grade or less	7.7	(1.44)	10.0	(1.10)	14.7	(2.92)	19.7	(2.84)	15.5	(2.47)	1.9	(0.57)	4.3	(1.70)	0.4	(0.23)	1.7	(0.55)	1.7	(0.91)	7.3	(1.24)	38.1	(3.27)
9th through 12th grade, no completion	15.8	(2.25)	20.2	(1.38)	25.6	(2.55)	25.5	(1.53)	27.2	(2.40)	7.9	(1.69)	1.1	(0.41)	2.1	(0.57)	7.6	(1.44)	1.5	(0.61)	12.5	(1.53)	55.7	(2.52)
High school completion	24.1	(1.10)	30.7	(0.84)	34.8	(1.37)	33.9	(1.07)	33.0	(1.62)	0.5	(0.24)	0.7	(0.24)	2.5	(0.36)	17.2	(1.18)	1.1	(0.35)	16.8	(1.27)	63.6	(1.93)
Some vocational/technical	34.2	(3.80)	41.9	(2.16)	41.1	(3.97)	50.7	(3.51)	43.3	(4.30)	0.5	(0.55)	‡	(†)	4.5	(1.42)	28.3	(3.71)	‡	(†)	23.2	(3.09)	77.6	(3.98)
Some college	41.4	(1.67)	49.3	(0.92)	51.1	(1.76)	57.4	(1.29)	51.1	(1.79)	0.3	(0.18)	0.8	(0.52)	8.6	(1.06)	28.8	(1.54)	1.4	(0.47)	26.8	(1.80)	79.8	(1.52)
Associate's degree	49.2	(5.82)	56.1	(1.85)	56.6	(2.93)	62.5	(2.15)	56.5	(3.64)	0.5	(0.40)	1.1	(0.51)	6.6	(1.42)	40.8	(3.27)	1.9	(0.66)	20.1	(2.48)	75.9	(3.70)
Bachelor's degree	51.1	(2.46)	56.9	(1.20)	60.3	(1.84)	64.5	(1.39)	59.8	(1.56)	‡	(†)	0.4	(0.17)	6.3	(0.82)	44.1	(1.61)	0.4	(0.17)	28.6	(1.55)	79.3	(1.72)
Some graduate work (or study)	55.1	(2.90)	59.9	(1.55)	63.6	(1.96)	68.9	(1.64)	66.3	(1.99)	‡	(†)	0.5	(0.32)	8.7	(0.86)	49.3	(2.15)	1.2	(0.61)	30.7	(1.77)	88.0	(1.06)
No degree	—	(†)	62.2	(2.67)	64.7	(4.39)	64.2	(3.54)	65.3	(4.84)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	14.5	(2.55)	40.5	(4.68)	‡	(†)	38.7	(4.81)	78.2	(4.34)
Master's	—	(†)	59.1	(1.88)	65.7	(2.64)	70.7	(2.10)	67.5	(2.59)	‡	(†)	0.9	(0.52)	8.9	(1.31)	51.4	(2.81)	1.4	(0.97)	30.6	(2.04)	88.8	(1.33)
Doctor's	—	(†)	54.0	(6.99)	53.1	(4.73)	63.7	(3.98)	58.0	(4.94)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	10.1	(3.14)	34.0	(4.53)	‡	(†)	31.4	(3.95)	90.3	(3.26)
Professional	—	(†)	65.9	(3.91)	72.5	(5.75)	72.8	(3.79)	68.2	(5.77)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	1.9	(1.01)	59.0	(6.35)	‡	(†)	23.9	(4.35)	91.6	(2.15)
Urbanicity
City	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	45.8	(1.46)	1.4	(0.31)	1.6	(0.38)	5.7	(0.59)	26.3	(1.24)	1.8	(0.43)	22.5	(1.10)	69.2	(1.39)
Suburban	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	46.9	(1.33)	0.9	(0.23)	0.9	(0.36)	5.8	(0.55)	29.7	(1.26)	0.9	(0.22)	23.4	(1.16)	73.4	(1.28)
Town	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	41.8	(2.33)	2.7	(1.16)	0.4	(0.14)	4.2	(0.87)	25.6	(1.74)	0.5	(0.21)	18.5	(1.96)	70.5	(2.43)
Rural	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	39.5	(2.04)	0.8	(0.22)	0.3	(0.15)	3.3	(0.59)	24.2	(1.38)	1.2	(0.40)	18.3	(1.76)	67.6	(1.76)
Labor force status
In labor force	40.7	(0.96)	49.8	(0.69)	52.1	(0.94)	—	(†)	52.3	(0.93)	1.4	(0.32)	0.8	(0.19)	6.4	(0.39)	37.1	(0.83)	1.5	(0.24)	21.9	(0.91)	73.0	(0.94)
Employed	42.0	(1.00)	50.7	(0.53)	52.5	(0.96)	—	(†)	53.4	(0.94)	1.1	(0.31)	0.7	(0.20)	6.5	(0.39)	38.8	(0.83)	1.4	(0.24)	21.8	(0.94)	73.5	(1.01)
Unemployed	26.0	(3.24)	36.6	(1.91)	44.9	(4.60)	—	(†)	37.8	(4.26)	5.8	(1.60)	1.9	(0.79)	5.2	(1.37)	13.5	(2.16)	2.1	(1.23)	22.1	(3.99)	66.7	(3.80)
Not in labor force	15.7	(0.91)	21.3	(0.69)	24.9	(1.17)	—	(†)	27.6	(1.18)	1.1	(0.24)	1.3	(0.36)	2.3	(0.45)	5.7	(0.55)	0.6	(0.22)	20.5	(0.97)	65.2	(1.27)
Occupation
Executive, administrative,     or managerial occupations	49.3	(3.45)	55.8	(1.92)	57.0	(2.11)	66.2	(1.61)	64.1	(2.73)	0.2	(0.24)	‡	(†)	6.0	(1.10)	51.8	(2.82)	0.4	(0.24)	28.8	(2.89)	78.6	(2.71)
Engineers, surveyors, and     architects	62.6	(7.85)	65.5	(4.18)	79.8	(6.01)	68.1	(4.46)	71.2	(5.68)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	9.3	(3.21)	55.6	(5.60)	‡	(†)	31.4	(6.19)	81.1	(4.63)
Natural scientists and     mathematicians	48.2	(9.86)	72.3	(3.52)	60.5	(6.74)	74.0	(4.46)	69.1	(4.63)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	9.2	(2.49)	49.6	(5.27)	2.0	(1.47)	30.2	(4.53)	85.5	(5.16)
Social scientists and workers,     religious workers, and lawyers	55.6	(6.01)	76.6	(2.61)	79.3	(4.35)	83.5	(3.05)	77.7	(4.11)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	12.8	(3.16)	64.3	(4.42)	‡	(†)	29.2	(3.52)	89.4	(2.78)
Teachers, elementary/secondary	56.0	(4.20)	54.8	(4.64)	66.5	(5.61)	79.9	(2.95)	79.7	(2.59)	‡	(†)	1.6	(1.00)	8.3	(3.16)	65.0	(3.99)	0.6	(0.34)	31.7	(3.78)	83.8	(2.62)
Teachers: college, university,     postsecondary institutions	45.5	(8.31)	76.7	(1.98)	78.4	(3.11)	69.4	(4.60)	61.3	(6.96)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	4.7	(3.22)	49.0	(8.50)	‡	(†)	19.5	(4.98)	91.7	(3.58)
Health diagnosing and treating     practitioners	67.1	(13.73)	71.1	(5.78)	79.8	(9.02)	78.5	(6.38)	88.8	(5.59)	0.6	(0.55)	‡	(†)	15.4	(2.47)	79.5	(6.59)	‡	(†)	31.9	(9.15)	84.5	(5.63)
Registered nurses, pharmacists,     dieticians, therapists, and     physician's assistants	59.6	(6.69)	86.7	(2.47)	85.4	(4.10)	82.7	(3.83)	85.4	(4.05)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	7.9	(2.17)	78.2	(4.89)	‡	(†)	27.4	(3.73)	83.1	(3.92)
Writers, artists, entertainers,     and athletes	42.9	(6.63)	49.9	(4.37)	50.0	(6.93)	46.8	(6.03)	52.5	(6.59)	0.2	(0.23)	‡	(†)	5.4	(2.16)	27.8	(5.02)	2.2	(1.53)	35.3	(6.42)	88.2	(3.89)
Health technologists and technicians	68.6	(10.03)	74.8	(3.64)	66.9	(6.16)	85.6	(3.25)	72.1	(8.37)	0.2	(0.16)	‡	(†)	6.0	(2.11)	63.2	(8.67)	1.7	(1.23)	24.6	(5.91)	75.6	(7.26)
Technologists and technicians, except     health and engineering	53.0	(6.49)	64.3	(2.84)	59.6	(5.07)	70.2	(3.32)	33.8	(8.53)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	7.1	(3.19)	29.1	(7.68)	‡	(†)	6.2	(2.14)	76.0	(8.80)
Marketing and sales occupations	34.4	(2.38)	44.2	(1.34)	44.4	(2.73)	51.1	(2.10)	45.7	(3.00)	1.7	(0.59)	0.4	(0.26)	4.5	(0.88)	30.2	(2.77)	1.4	(0.80)	21.5	(2.43)	68.9	(3.37)
Administrative support occupations,     including clerical	29.9	(1.74)	51.7	(1.25)	50.1	(2.29)	58.7	(1.72)	54.6	(2.70)	1.1	(0.53)	‡	(†)	6.6	(0.98)	33.5	(2.70)	1.3	(0.63)	27.7	(2.18)	73.8	(2.33)
Service occupations	25.2	(1.82)	46.5	(1.38)	50.9	(2.74)	49.3	(2.24)	44.7	(2.47)	1.6	(0.39)	1.9	(0.88)	6.8	(1.42)	28.5	(2.64)	1.4	(0.57)	17.5	(2.10)	65.4	(2.71)
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing     occupations	14.3	(5.19)	26.4	(3.55)	34.3	(7.16)	46.4	(6.80)	44.4	(9.02)	3.9	(3.49)	5.7	(4.02)	1.1	(0.89)	20.3	(6.92)	2.3	(1.53)	21.6	(10.05)	64.0	(10.03)
Mechanics and repairers	32.1	(4.72)	47.6	(2.70)	42.2	(5.44)	35.1	(3.40)	40.1	(5.10)	0.5	(0.40)	‡	(†)	6.0	(1.89)	27.4	(4.26)	3.8	(1.38)	12.7	(3.18)	69.3	(4.27)
Construction and extractive     occupations	21.9	(3.38)	38.0	(2.45)	34.5	(4.78)	32.3	(3.19)	27.6	(3.73)	1.2	(0.68)	1.1	(0.49)	3.2	(1.08)	12.3	(2.54)	5.2	(1.89)	11.4	(2.72)	72.3	(4.48)
Precision production2	31.2	(6.09)	43.0	(4.32)	38.3	(8.48)	35.1	(6.19)	33.0	(3.98)	0.5	(0.37)	0.4	(0.16)	4.2	(1.42)	22.2	(3.41)	1.5	(0.81)	13.3	(2.99)	63.9	(3.46)
Production workers	21.1	(2.31)	30.7	(1.29)	38.0	(3.47)	39.4	(2.82)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)
Transportation, material moving	20.7	(4.69)	28.4	(2.32)	33.3	(4.25)	30.4	(3.29)	34.6	(5.27)	4.7	(3.29)	3.3	(2.35)	1.3	(0.76)	14.7	(2.63)	3.2	(1.57)	11.2	(2.85)	60.8	(4.98)
Handler, equipment, cleaners,     helpers, and laborers	20.8	(3.49)	25.1	(2.70)	19.6	(4.56)	18.2	(3.20)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)
Miscellaneous occupations	—	(†)	56.6	(3.61)	43.0	(7.98)	64.9	(7.07)	39.2	(11.25)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	‡	(†)	15.7	(5.81)	‡	(†)	7.8	(3.63)	52.2	(12.32)
Annual household income
$5,000 or less	13.6	(1.70)	21.3	(1.59)	21.0	(3.22)	25.1	(2.92)	35.9	(4.83)	3.3	(2.17)	1.8	(1.04)	3.6	(1.52)	13.7	(4.00)	2.3	(1.89)	17.2	(3.59)	52.9	(4.97)
$5,001 to $10,000	17.5	(2.14)	23.9	(1.37)	24.5	(3.39)	28.0	(2.74)	29.6	(4.49)	2.4	(0.92)	1.5	(0.71)	1.7	(0.81)	8.4	(2.11)	‡	(†)	21.8	(4.75)	61.0	(3.75)
$10,001 to $15,000	22.8	(2.60)	26.7	(1.61)	22.8	(2.45)	28.6	(2.30)	25.0	(3.41)	2.4	(0.69)	0.8	(0.33)	3.3	(1.17)	11.3	(2.52)	0.9	(0.66)	15.5	(3.14)	58.6	(4.43)
$15,001 to $20,000	21.9	(2.35)	31.8	(1.55)	31.4	(2.75)	30.2	(2.48)	24.3	(2.54)	1.0	(0.38)	0.5	(0.30)	3.3	(1.19)	10.1	(1.37)	2.6	(1.20)	12.9	(2.00)	61.1	(3.17)
$20,001 to $25,000	26.7	(3.20)	31.4	(1.27)	35.8	(2.81)	35.2	(2.27)	28.2	(2.51)	1.7	(0.78)	1.9	(0.62)	4.4	(1.26)	12.8	(2.04)	1.1	(0.50)	13.6	(1.88)	63.2	(3.11)
$25,001 to $30,000	32.1	(2.51)	37.9	(1.47)	36.7	(2.61)	38.3	(2.43)	38.6	(3.63)	1.4	(0.72)	1.3	(0.61)	6.8	(2.09)	20.2	(3.37)	0.7	(0.38)	18.4	(2.52)	71.0	(3.38)
$30,001 to $40,000	35.6	(1.84)	42.7	(0.86)	45.2	(2.05)	44.6	(1.54)	42.7	(2.65)	1.9	(0.65)	1.0	(0.49)	3.7	(0.68)	22.8	(2.27)	1.1	(0.39)	23.0	(2.49)	68.7	(2.36)
$40,001 to $50,000	44.8	(1.84)	46.8	(1.39)	47.9	(2.31)	49.1	(1.93)	41.4	(2.92)	1.6	(0.53)	2.4	(1.25)	2.9	(0.55)	22.4	(2.00)	1.5	(0.56)	20.5	(2.47)	71.9	(2.62)
$50,001 to $75,000	46.6	(2.03)	52.0	(0.94)	55.1	(1.80)	55.7	(1.48)	47.7	(1.74)	0.4	(0.19)	0.3	(0.17)	5.8	(0.69)	33.0	(1.37)	0.9	(0.36)	20.5	(1.67)	70.6	(2.15)
More than $75,000	48.7	(3.15)	58.0	(1.27)	56.9	(1.66)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)
$75,001 to $100,000	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	59.7	(1.91)	56.4	(2.28)	2.2	(1.17)	0.3	(0.19)	7.5	(0.89)	38.6	(2.26)	1.8	(0.64)	25.3	(1.51)	75.0	(1.97)
More than $100,000	—	(†)	—	(†)	—	(†)	59.3	(1.82)	58.4	(2.11)	‡	(†)	0.7	(0.38)	6.1	(0.70)	39.4	(1.80)	0.8	(0.44)	28.2	(1.62)	81.2	(1.68)

—Not available.

†Not applicable.

‡Reporting standards not met.

1 Includes college and university degree programs, post-degree certificate programs, and vocational certificate programs.

2 For 2005, figures include "Production workers" occupations data.

NOTE: Adult education is defined as all education activities, except full-time enrollment in higher education credential programs. Data do not include persons enrolled in high school or below. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Standard errors appear in parentheses.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Adult Education Survey (AE-NHES:1991, AE-NHES:1995, AE-NHES:1999, and AE-NHES:2005) and Adult Education and Lifelong Learning Survey (AELL-NHES:2001) of the National Household Education Surveys Program. (This table was prepared November 2010.)