More Americans have completed high school.

• Between 1990 and 2003, the proportion of the adult population 25 years of age and over who had completed high school rose from 78 percent to an all-time high of 85 percent.²³

Bachelor's degrees are becoming more common.

• Between 1990 and 2003, the proportion of the adult population 25 years of age and over with a bachelor's degree increased from 21 percent to an all-time high of 27 percent.²⁴

College financial aid is on the rise.

• Under the president's 2005 budget request, overall student financial aid would grow to $73.1 billion.²⁵
• The number of recipients of grant, loan, and work-study assistance would increase by 426,000 to 10 million students and parents.