About a third of Americans say a high school diploma was their parents' highest schooling
Core finding
In a March 2025 Verasight survey, about a third of Americans (33%) say their parents' or guardians' schooling ended with a high school diploma.
College credentials fill much of the remainder: 21% report a bachelor's degree, 17% some college, 12% a postgraduate degree, and 7% an associate degree, while 8% report some high school and 2% no high school.
Topline distribution
About a third of Americans say a high school diploma was their parents' highest schooling.
What is the highest level of education of your parent(s)/guardian(s)?
n = 1,000 · Feb 28 – Mar 6, 2025 · MoE ±3.5%
Methodology
Full methodology →| Mode | Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting |
|---|---|
| Population | United States adults |
| Field dates | Feb 28 – Mar 6, 2025 |
| Base (unweighted) | 1,000 |
| Margin of error | ±3.5% |
| Module | health |
| Sponsor | Verasight |
| Weight variable | weight |
| Weighting targets | age, race/ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, metropolitan status |
Sources
- verasight-spsp-2025.tiiny.co
What is the highest level of education of your parent(s)/guardian(s)?
Cite this question
Verasight SPSP Omnibus Survey #2025-010, fielded February 28-March 6, 2025, N=1,000 United States adults, +/- 3.5%.