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Tables: Adult

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Table A46. Percentage distributions of selected background characteristics of adults ages 25 to 64, by licensure status: 2016

Background characteristic All adults     Adults who have a
license
    Adults who do not
have a license
               
Total, all adults 100.0     100.0     100.0
               
Sex              
Male 46.2     40.2     47.6
Female 53.8     59.8     52.4
               
Race/Ethnicity              
Hispanic/Latino 17.2     11.5     18.6
Asian, Native Hawaiian, or Other Pacific Islander 6.0     4.8     6.3
Black or African American 12.2     12.3     12.2
White 61.8     68.9     60.1
Other1 2.8     2.5     2.8
               
Age              
25 to 34 years 25.4     24.5     25.6
35 to 44 years 24.4     27.0     23.8
45 to 54 years 25.5     26.3     25.2
55 to 64 years 24.8     22.1     25.4
               
Highest level of education, not counting postsecondary
certificates
             
Less than high school 11.5     2.6     13.6
High school (or equivalent) 25.8     13.9     28.7
Some college, no degree 19.5     17.9     19.9
Associate’s degree 8.7     12.0     7.9
Bachelor’s degree 22.6     27.4     21.4
Graduate or professional degree 11.9     26.2     8.4
               
Highest level of education, counting postsecondary
certificates
             
Less than high school 11.2     2.5     13.4
High school (or equivalent) 23.9     12.4     26.7
Postsecondary certificate 5.9     6.1     5.8
Some college, no degree or certificate 15.8     13.4     16.4
Associate’s degree 8.7     12.0     7.9
Bachelor’s degree 22.6     27.4     21.4
Graduate or professional degree 11.9     26.2     8.4
               
Highest level of education, aggregated              
High school or less 35.1     14.9     40.0
Some college, no bachelor’s degree (including certificate holders) 30.4     31.5     30.1
Bachelor’s or higher degree 34.5     53.6     29.8
               
Labor force participation              
In labor force 74.1     86.6     71.1
Not in labor force 25.9     13.4     28.9
               
Employment status among those in the labor force              
Employed 91.3     95.7     90.0
Unemployed 8.7     4.3     10.0
               
Underemployment status among those employed2              
Underemployed 9.3     6.2     10.2
Not underemployed 90.7     93.8     89.8
               
Combined underemployment and unemployment status
among those in the labor force
             
Underemployed or unemployed 17.2     10.3     19.3
Employed and not underemployed 82.8     89.7     80.7
               
Sector of employment among those employed              
Private sector 82.2     73.1     85.0
Public sector 17.8     26.9     15.0
1 "Other" includes American Indian, Alaska Native, and respondents having origins in two or more races. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic origin.
2 Underemployed adults are those who are employed part time only but would prefer to work full time or are working in a temporary job but would prefer a permanent job.
NOTE: Adults are ages 25 to 64 and not enrolled in high school. The total number of adults is approximately 164,125,000, the total number of adults who have a license is approximately 31,990,000, and the total number of adults who do not have a license is approximately 132,135,000. Certifications and licenses were defined in the survey as follows: "A professional certification or license shows you are qualified to perform a specific job and includes things like licensed realtor, certified medical assistant, certified teacher, or an IT certification." If a respondent indicated that a license or certification was required by a government agency, it was counted as a license; otherwise it was counted as a certification. Information was collected on respondents’ three most important licenses and certifications. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Adult Training and Education Survey (ATES) of the National Household Education Surveys Program, 2016.
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