Counties with the most college graduates in West Virginia
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 West Virginia 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 using 2020 5-year estimates.
Keep reading to see which counties in your state have the most college graduates.
#30. Upshur County
- 16.2% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 13.3% ($28,114 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 51.0% ($30,265)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 19.5% ($32,002)
- Bachelor's degree: 10.0% ($46,250)
- Graduate or professional degree: 6.2% ($56,737)
#29. Tyler County
- 16.2% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 10.6% (earnings not available)
- High school graduate: 45.6% ($27,500)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 27.6% ($36,466)
- Bachelor's degree: 11.2% ($41,818)
- Graduate or professional degree: 5.0% ($50,625)
#28. Preston County
- 16.2% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 13.5% ($24,554 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 49.0% ($29,783)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 21.3% ($31,069)
- Bachelor's degree: 10.0% ($52,441)
- Graduate or professional degree: 6.3% ($51,346)
#27. Hancock County
- 16.3% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 10.7% ($25,711 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 39.8% ($26,589)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 33.2% ($34,745)
- Bachelor's degree: 10.3% ($37,972)
- Graduate or professional degree: 6.0% ($54,934)
#26. Doddridge County
- 16.6% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 17.9% ($26,900 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 44.3% ($41,079)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 21.2% ($21,998)
- Bachelor's degree: 11.4% ($30,580)
- Graduate or professional degree: 5.1% ($65,833)
#25. Mason County
- 17.0% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 13.7% ($23,267 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 42.3% ($26,944)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 27.0% ($37,146)
- Bachelor's degree: 11.5% ($45,667)
- Graduate or professional degree: 5.5% ($61,265)
#24. Gilmer County
- 17.0% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 15.8% (earnings not available)
- High school graduate: 47.0% ($29,435)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 20.2% ($24,471)
- Bachelor's degree: 10.1% ($26,293)
- Graduate or professional degree: 7.0% ($38,828)
#23. Wayne County
- 17.5% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 18.9% ($19,737 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 38.6% ($34,783)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 25.1% ($31,146)
- Bachelor's degree: 10.2% ($49,128)
- Graduate or professional degree: 7.3% ($62,639)
#22. Mineral County
- 17.6% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 7.6% ($29,277 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 47.3% ($28,080)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 27.5% ($33,379)
- Bachelor's degree: 10.1% ($53,707)
- Graduate or professional degree: 7.5% ($57,109)
#21. Nicholas County
- 17.7% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 11.7% ($12,149 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 48.4% ($29,730)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 22.2% ($27,919)
- Bachelor's degree: 9.6% ($41,660)
- Graduate or professional degree: 8.1% ($44,576)
#20. Pendleton County
- 17.9% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 19.2% ($20,357 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 47.9% ($29,485)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 14.9% ($29,792)
- Bachelor's degree: 12.6% ($41,949)
- Graduate or professional degree: 5.4% ($51,303)
#19. Jackson County
- 18.0% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 11.3% ($30,843 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 43.7% ($34,152)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 27.0% ($41,622)
- Bachelor's degree: 10.0% ($52,517)
- Graduate or professional degree: 8.0% ($61,071)
#18. Marshall County
- 18.6% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 7.6% ($24,750 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 44.6% ($33,059)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 29.3% ($34,798)
- Bachelor's degree: 10.5% ($42,080)
- Graduate or professional degree: 8.1% ($50,111)
#17. Morgan County
- 18.6% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 11.9% ($27,265 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 42.1% ($34,258)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 27.5% ($37,650)
- Bachelor's degree: 9.6% ($46,560)
- Graduate or professional degree: 9.0% ($56,693)
#16. Taylor County
- 18.8% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 9.3% ($18,631 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 43.6% ($30,463)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 28.3% ($34,257)
- Bachelor's degree: 12.3% ($45,898)
- Graduate or professional degree: 6.5% ($73,942)
#15. Tucker County
- 19.5% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 11.8% ($24,855 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 46.0% ($28,596)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 22.7% ($26,453)
- Bachelor's degree: 10.8% ($32,969)
- Graduate or professional degree: 8.7% ($43,750)
#14. Raleigh County
- 19.9% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 12.5% ($17,790 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 38.8% ($27,680)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 28.9% ($29,661)
- Bachelor's degree: 12.6% ($45,850)
- Graduate or professional degree: 7.2% ($50,452)
#13. Greenbrier County
- 20.1% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 14.3% ($14,793 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 37.6% ($26,393)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 28.0% ($27,122)
- Bachelor's degree: 12.5% ($36,146)
- Graduate or professional degree: 7.6% ($60,768)
#12. Mercer County
- 20.1% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 15.7% ($20,693 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 38.7% ($33,843)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 25.5% ($26,745)
- Bachelor's degree: 13.4% ($39,964)
- Graduate or professional degree: 6.7% ($48,548)
#11. Brooke County
- 20.2% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 8.1% ($31,563 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 41.0% ($29,315)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 30.8% ($34,017)
- Bachelor's degree: 13.2% ($45,512)
- Graduate or professional degree: 7.0% ($48,657)
#10. Wood County
- 22.0% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 9.1% ($19,776 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 33.9% ($30,113)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 35.1% ($31,947)
- Bachelor's degree: 13.7% ($42,272)
- Graduate or professional degree: 8.2% ($59,097)
#9. Berkeley County
- 22.8% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 9.7% ($24,113 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 37.4% ($36,721)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 30.1% ($39,494)
- Bachelor's degree: 14.5% ($51,853)
- Graduate or professional degree: 8.4% ($59,468)
#8. Marion County
- 23.1% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 9.8% ($19,603 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 40.5% ($31,457)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 26.7% ($36,180)
- Bachelor's degree: 14.5% ($50,287)
- Graduate or professional degree: 8.6% ($54,803)
#7. Harrison County
- 23.1% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 11.3% ($23,630 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 39.9% ($30,975)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 25.8% ($37,313)
- Bachelor's degree: 14.3% ($50,598)
- Graduate or professional degree: 8.8% ($53,893)
#6. Putnam County
- 26.3% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 7.7% ($19,204 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 36.7% ($34,785)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 29.4% ($40,845)
- Bachelor's degree: 16.0% ($59,586)
- Graduate or professional degree: 10.3% ($74,265)
#5. Kanawha County
- 26.4% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 10.7% ($20,697 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 36.6% ($28,094)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 26.3% ($33,157)
- Bachelor's degree: 15.9% ($49,667)
- Graduate or professional degree: 10.5% ($64,763)
#4. Cabell County
- 27.1% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 11.8% ($18,063 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 32.7% ($30,017)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 28.5% ($30,550)
- Bachelor's degree: 15.3% ($43,531)
- Graduate or professional degree: 11.8% ($56,197)
#3. Ohio County
- 31.6% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 7.2% ($20,638 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 34.6% ($26,601)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 26.6% ($34,405)
- Bachelor's degree: 19.2% ($42,074)
- Graduate or professional degree: 12.4% ($60,810)
#2. Jefferson County
- 31.6% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 9.5% ($25,442 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 30.7% ($36,961)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 28.2% ($42,321)
- Bachelor's degree: 19.1% ($63,797)
- Graduate or professional degree: 12.5% ($74,301)
#1. Monongalia County
- 43.7% of population 25 years and over with Bachelor's degree or higher
- Less than high school diploma: 7.2% ($18,079 median earnings)
- High school graduate: 26.7% ($30,083)
- Some college or Associate's degree: 22.4% ($31,763)
- Bachelor's degree: 20.9% ($44,477)
- Graduate or professional degree: 22.7% ($63,647)
