Anchorage may not make the top 20 cities in terms of higher education, but it’s not at the bottom, either, according to a study by WalletHub.
To determine where the most educated Americans live, WalletHub compared the 150 largest U.S. metropolitan statistical areas across 11 key metrics. The data set ranges from the share of adults aged 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree or higher to the racial education gap to the quality of the public-school system.
Ann Arbor, Mich. has the highest share of bachelor’s degree holders aged 25 and older, 57.20%, which is 3.8 times higher than in Visalia, CA, the metro area with the lowest at 15.20%.
Anchorage ranked 60th for having a population with college degrees, out of the 150 cities measured. No other Alaska cities were part of this study.
The most and least educated cities, according to WalletHub, are:
| Most Educated Cities | Least Educated Cities |
| 1. Ann Arbor, MI | 141. Salinas, CA |
| 2. San Jose, CA | 142. Corpus Christi, TX |
| 3. Washington, DC | 143. Beaumont, TX |
| 4. San Francisco, CA | 144. Hickory, NC |
| 5. Madison, WI | 145. Stockton, CA |
| 6. Durham, NC | 146. Modesto, CA |
| 7. Boston, MA | 147. Bakersfield, CA |
| 8. Raleigh, NC | 148. McAllen, TX |
| 9. Seattle, WA | 149. Brownsville, TX |
| 10. Austin, TX | 150. Visalia, CA |
One thing sets Anchorage apart from the others: The Anchorage metro area has the highest gender education gap, with the share of female bachelor’s degree holders aged 25 and older at 23.25%t, compared with 18.64% for their male counterparts, a difference of 4.61% more women.
For comparison, the national average for women with the same attributes is 21.03%, and it is 20.12% for their men counterparts.
El Paso, Texas metro area has the highest racial education gap, with the share of black bachelor’s degree holders aged 25 and older at 23.75 percent, compared with 20.78 percent for their white counterparts, a difference of 2.96 percent favoring black people.
For comparison, the national average for black people with the same attributes is 15.07 percent, and it is 23.32 percent for their white counterparts.
To view the full report and your city’s rank, visit this WalletHub link.
