Latino Grads Suffered More During Recession

Latino college graduates suffered much more than their white counterparts when the economy began a downturn over the past few years, according to a report from the Pew Hispanic Center. And yet, even these graduates fared better than Latinos who did not graduate from college. Mark Hugo Lopez wrote a column in which he said:

But the Great Recession affected young Latino college graduates greatly. In the fourth quarter of 2007, the unemployment rate among 25 to 34 year old Latino college graduates was 2.9 percent. By the fourth quarter of 2010 it was 8.1 percent. In comparison, among non-Hispanic white college graduates, the unemployment rate increased more modestly, from 1.8 percent in 2007 to 3.8 percent in 2010. But Latino college graduates fared better than other Latinos. For example, among Latino high school graduates ages 25 to 34, the unemployment rate increased from 5.3 percent in 2007 to 12.1 percent in 2010.

While young Latinos value a college education, fewer than half expect to get a college degree. And when it comes to pursuing a degree, only 29 percent of Latinos ages 18 to 24 are enrolled in college, with enrollment rates higher among the native born than among the foreign born — 36 percent versus 16 percent.

We’ve written recently about Latinos and education and the picture is a bit scary. There are only about 6 million Latinos with bachelor’s degrees in this country, and many more of them are Latinas than Latinos. Take this together with the fact that educated Latinos have suffered greatly during the recession and one begins to wonder what the future of this country will look like. Will the American Dream still hold true for all of us?

Thanks to Joseph for the tip.

Follow Sara Inés Calderón on Twitter @SaraChicaD