Job opportunities are improving for college graduates

From 1967 to 2007, the share of high-skill management and professional jobs rose 14% to represent 35% of all U.S. jobs. (Photo: Shutterstock)

(Bloomberg Business) — Mountains of student debt, flattening wages, and a tough job market have made many people question whether ever-pricey college degrees still lead to good jobs. The answer is yes: Job opportunities for college-educated workers have never been greater, according to a new report.

The report, published Monday by Georgetown University’s Center on Education & the Workforce, found that from 1967 to 2007, the share of high-skill management and professional jobs rose 14 percent and that those jobs represent 35 percent of all U.S. jobs. The results belie one widely held belief about the economy: that over the last four decades, lucrative jobs have disappeared and been replaced by high numbers of low-skill, low- wage service jobs. In fact, over the same period, opportunities for low-skill workers declined 10 percent. These low-skill labor roles, such as fast-food server, retail worker, and dishwasher, now make up only 29 percent of jobs.