Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
The Modesto Bee
These Central Valley cities are among least educated in U.S., study says. Where did they rank?
By Sarah Linn,
15 days ago
When it comes to education, a few Central Valley cities lag behind the rest, according to WalletHub.
The personal finance website recently ranked the most educated cities in the United States , comparing the 150 largest metropolitan statistical areas based on factors including the share of adults with bachelor’s degrees or higher and the quality of public schools and universities.
Each location then received a score, with 100 indicating the best possible levels of education.
“Cities want to attract highly educated workers to fuel their economic growth and tax revenues,” WalletHub financial writer Adam McCann wrote in a July 2 article titled “ Most & Least Educated Cities in America (2024) .” “Higher levels of education tend to lead to higher salaries, and the more that people earn, the more tax dollars they contribute over time.”
In turn, McCann wrote, “people want to live somewhere where they will get a good return on their educational investment.”
Ann Arbor, Michigan, was No. 1 on WalletHub’s list of most educated metropolitan areas with an overall score of 93.7 out 100.
The San Jose metro area came in second, and the Washington, D.C., metro area took third place.
On the other end of the spectrum, Visalia was the least educated metro area in the nation with an overall score of 9.44.
Two California metropolitan areas are among the most educated in the United States, according to WalletHub. Nikish Hiraman/PeopleImages.com
Where do California cities rank in terms of education?
San Jose, Sunnyvale and Santa Clara was the highest ranking California metropolitan area on WalletHub’s list of top spots for education, earning an overall score of 82.1 out of 100.
In the Silicon Valley, more than 54% of adults ages 25 and older have at least a bachelor’s degree, WalletHub said, and more than 26% have a graduate or professional degree.
San Jose ranked first in the country in terms of university quality, the site said.
Elsewhere in California, San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley came in sixth place on WalletHub’s list of the most educated metro areas with an overall score of 80.76.
The metro area of Sacramento, Roseville and Folsom was No. 49 on the list, and the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area landed at No. 64.
Central Valley cities appeared near the bottom of the list, with Fresno at No. 140, Stockton at No. 145 and Modesto at No. 146.
What are the 10 least educated cities in the U.S.?
These cities ranked the lowest in the nation in terms of education levels and quality schools, WalletHub said:
No. 141: Corpus Christi, Texas
No. 142: Salinas
No. 143: Beaumont and Port Arthur, Texas
No. 144: Hickory, Lenoir and Morganton, North Carolina
No. 145: Stockton
No. 146: Modesto
No. 147: Bakersfield
No. 148: Brownsville and Harlingen, Texas
No. 149: McAllen, Edinburg and Mission, Texas
No. 150: Visalia
Two California metropolitan areas are among the most educated in the United States, according to WalletHub. Tom Werner/Getty Images
How did WalletHub come up with its rankings?
To identify the most and least educated cities in America, WalletHub compared the 150 most populated U.S. metropolitan statistical areas using 11 metrics.
Those metrics included the:
Share of adults ages 25 and older with a high school diploma or higher
Share of adults with a bachelor’s degree or higher
Share of adults with a graduate or professional degree
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency:
Our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. As a platform hosting over 100,000 pieces of content published daily, we cannot pre-vet content, but we strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation.
Comments / 0