If you're a young female college grad, the American Association of University
Women (AAUW) has some good news and some bad news for you. The good news: College-educated
women typically earn about 80 percent more than women who have only completed
high school. The bad news: The fact that you have a college degree still doesn't
mean you can expect to earn as much as your male classmates.
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Get Your Report Now!In fact, according to Gains in Learning, Gaps in Earnings, an online report
released recently by the AAUW in partnership with the Institute for Women's
Policy Research (IWPR), college-educated women earn only 72 percent as much
as college-educated men--a wage gap of $17,600 a year.
"In every state," comments Elena Silva, director of research for the AAUW Educational
Foundation, "a persistent and significant gap exists between the earnings of
college-educated, full-time working women and college-educated, full-time working
men." The largest gender-based earnings gaps can be found in Utah, Oklahoma,
South Carolina, Mississippi, and Puerto Rico. In contrast, the gap was smallest
in Nevada, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, New York, and Alaska. "This report
sends a strong message,"
AAUW Educational Foundation President Mary Ellen Smyth says. "It is time to
look at these glaring inequities and examine the ways we can make change and
effectively close this gap through education, legislation, and grassroots outreach."
For more information, visit http://www.aauw.org/research/statedata/index.cfm.