Gloom Widespread as College Grads Face New Math

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On average, wages for workers with four-year college degrees fell by 8.6% adjusted for inflation between 2000 and 2010, according to government data. For them, it has been a lost decade.

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Still, the gloomy mood of so many college-educated Americans reflects their economic reality. Chart the Census Bureau's numbers for the median pretax income of families headed by a college grad, adjusted for inflation. It rises to a peak of $99,431 in 1999 and then turns down; last year, it was 9% below the peak, $90,636. The economy grew, but their incomes didn't. One in six of today's currently unemployed—2.4 million people—has a bachelor's degree.

Things are worse for the young. The unemployment rate for recent college grads is 10.7%. More than 14% of Americans between 25 and 34 (5.9 million in all) are living with their parents, up significantly from before the recession. Nearly a quarter of them have bachelor's degrees.

Having a college degree no longer guarantees a rising wage or a shot at the American dream. That is contributing to a widespread sense that the U.S. economy isn't working any longer for the bulk of Americans. Two-thirds of those polled by The Wall Street Journal—two-thirds!—said they aren't confident life for their children's generation will be better than it has been for them. This loss of confidence is corrosive.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204505304576654842642615166.html