
Counties with the most college graduates in New York
Counties with the most college graduates in New York
The American philosopher and psychologist John Dewey once said, “Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.” Dewey advocated for an educational paradigm called pragmatism, which stresses the importance of learning academic concepts by experiencing them firsthand, instead of through lecture and repetition in a classroom.
While the philosophy is used by many educators (especially those working in fields where the value of work experience exceeds the value placed on an academic background), many people take great pride in their formal educational credentials because of the valuable skills such educations provided and because of the immense amount of work that goes into earning a degree.
Stacker compiled a list of counties with the most college graduates in New York using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Counties are ranked by the highest percent of the population 25 years and over that has a Bachelor’s degree or higher.
Keep reading to see which counties in your state have the most college graduates.

#30. Tioga County
- Less than high school diploma: 8.8% ($22,051 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 35.9% ($32,823)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 29.2% ($37,913)
- Bachelor's degree: 16% ($63,232)
- Graduate or professional degree: 10% ($61,743)
#29. Madison County
- Less than high school diploma: 7.9% ($31,324 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 34.8% ($33,132)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 31% ($39,069)
- Bachelor's degree: 15% ($50,922)
- Graduate or professional degree: 11.2% ($65,059)
#28. Livingston County
- Less than high school diploma: 9.4% ($28,086 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 31.9% ($36,985)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 32.3% ($40,122)
- Bachelor's degree: 14.4% ($52,571)
- Graduate or professional degree: 12.1% ($61,159)

#27. Essex County
- Less than high school diploma: 8.5% ($24,355 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 34.4% ($30,079)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 30.2% ($32,585)
- Bachelor's degree: 15% ($40,770)
- Graduate or professional degree: 11.8% ($56,840)

#26. Cortland County
- Less than high school diploma: 9.3% ($27,031 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 32.1% ($31,197)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 30.7% ($38,174)
- Bachelor's degree: 15.6% ($48,817)
- Graduate or professional degree: 12.3% ($56,090)

#25. Broome County
- Less than high school diploma: 9.3% ($22,407 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 31.5% ($29,476)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 30.9% ($35,126)
- Bachelor's degree: 15.4% ($50,784)
- Graduate or professional degree: 12.9% ($61,278)
#24. Orange County
- Less than high school diploma: 10.3% ($26,389 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 29.3% ($36,995)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 30.1% ($44,865)
- Bachelor's degree: 17.4% ($65,832)
- Graduate or professional degree: 12.9% ($83,962)

#23. Otsego County
- Less than high school diploma: 8.3% ($22,986 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 31.3% ($31,124)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 29.4% ($32,363)
- Bachelor's degree: 16.9% ($36,809)
- Graduate or professional degree: 14.2% ($56,901)
#22. Warren County
- Less than high school diploma: 8.1% ($26,661 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 30.6% ($31,930)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 30% ($38,927)
- Bachelor's degree: 16.7% ($48,193)
- Graduate or professional degree: 14.7% ($64,896)
#21. Rensselaer County
- Less than high school diploma: 8.2% ($25,023 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 29% ($36,384)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 30.9% ($44,039)
- Bachelor's degree: 18% ($57,901)
- Graduate or professional degree: 14% ($69,880)
#20. Schenectady County
- Less than high school diploma: 9.3% ($23,485 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 29.5% ($31,126)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 29.1% ($39,960)
- Bachelor's degree: 18.5% ($54,007)
- Graduate or professional degree: 13.6% ($73,106)
#19. Queens County
- Less than high school diploma: 18% ($24,406 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 27.5% ($31,762)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 22.3% ($41,124)
- Bachelor's degree: 20.2% ($55,483)
- Graduate or professional degree: 11.9% ($73,134)
#18. Ulster County
- Less than high school diploma: 9.3% ($23,887 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 29.7% ($32,616)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 28.5% ($37,570)
- Bachelor's degree: 17.4% ($50,192)
- Graduate or professional degree: 15.1% ($67,823)
#17. Columbia County
- Less than high school diploma: 9.7% ($26,774 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 30% ($31,995)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 27.6% ($38,625)
- Bachelor's degree: 17.2% ($49,022)
- Graduate or professional degree: 15.5% ($64,000)

#16. Staten Island
- Less than high school diploma: 11.3% ($26,164 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 30.4% ($41,285)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 24.5% ($49,408)
- Bachelor's degree: 20.2% ($65,981)
- Graduate or professional degree: 13.7% ($78,147)

#15. Erie County
- Less than high school diploma: 8.2% ($22,494 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 27.6% ($31,779)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 29.9% ($37,770)
- Bachelor's degree: 19.4% ($53,103)
- Graduate or professional degree: 14.9% ($64,190)

#14. Dutchess County
- Less than high school diploma: 8.9% ($25,302 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 26.8% ($35,457)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 29.3% ($43,347)
- Bachelor's degree: 19% ($61,644)
- Graduate or professional degree: 16% ($86,078)

#13. Onondaga County
- Less than high school diploma: 9% ($25,056 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 25.4% ($33,756)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 29.7% ($39,563)
- Bachelor's degree: 20% ($55,485)
- Graduate or professional degree: 15.9% ($68,099)
#12. Ontario County
- Less than high school diploma: 6.1% ($26,469 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 26.4% ($31,358)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 31.1% ($37,055)
- Bachelor's degree: 19.7% ($54,642)
- Graduate or professional degree: 16.6% ($65,333)
#11. Suffolk County
- Less than high school diploma: 9.5% ($28,969 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 27.3% ($41,742)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 26.9% ($50,051)
- Bachelor's degree: 19.8% ($66,040)
- Graduate or professional degree: 16.6% ($90,081)

#10. Kings County
- Less than high school diploma: 17.6% ($21,616 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 25.7% ($30,527)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 19.2% ($38,778)
- Bachelor's degree: 22.5% ($61,435)
- Graduate or professional degree: 15% ($76,057)

#9. Monroe County
- Less than high school diploma: 9.7% ($22,552 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 23.4% ($30,338)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 28.4% ($36,222)
- Bachelor's degree: 21.4% ($53,625)
- Graduate or professional degree: 17.2% ($65,143)

#8. Putnam County
- Less than high school diploma: 7% ($25,557 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 27.1% ($39,897)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 26.3% ($50,008)
- Bachelor's degree: 22.5% ($66,775)
- Graduate or professional degree: 17.1% ($88,159)

#7. Rockland County
- Less than high school diploma: 11.8% ($23,291 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 22.5% ($37,152)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 24.6% ($45,064)
- Bachelor's degree: 22.4% ($68,703)
- Graduate or professional degree: 18.7% ($87,723)

#6. Saratoga County
- Less than high school diploma: 6% ($26,615 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 24.9% ($36,383)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 27.8% ($45,299)
- Bachelor's degree: 23.6% ($64,725)
- Graduate or professional degree: 17.8% ($79,476)

#5. Albany County
- Less than high school diploma: 7.9% ($23,021 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 23% ($31,896)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 27.4% ($41,942)
- Bachelor's degree: 21.4% ($58,151)
- Graduate or professional degree: 20.4% ($71,931)

#4. Nassau County
- Less than high school diploma: 8.6% ($26,655 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 22.7% ($39,857)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 22.7% ($50,301)
- Bachelor's degree: 25.3% ($74,575)
- Graduate or professional degree: 20.7% ($93,119)

#3. Westchester County
- Less than high school diploma: 12% ($25,072 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 19.2% ($34,226)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 19.9% ($44,380)
- Bachelor's degree: 24.2% ($75,190)
- Graduate or professional degree: 24.7% ($101,486)

#2. Tompkins County
- Less than high school diploma: 5.6% ($20,787 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 19% ($30,472)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 22% ($36,155)
- Bachelor's degree: 22.7% ($41,913)
- Graduate or professional degree: 30.8% ($56,583)

#1. New York County
- Less than high school diploma: 12.8% ($20,944 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 12.4% ($30,324)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 13.6% ($38,059)
- Bachelor's degree: 31.7% ($81,380)
- Graduate or professional degree: 29.6% ($103,829)