From age 16 to 24, young adults make choices about college, job training, and starting work that can set them on divergent paths—although economic circumstances and social trends may influence their choices and options. As opportunities shift and technology alters the labor landscape, Californians are worried over the economic conditions facing young adults. Understanding who is progressing around key milestones can help policymakers devise strategies to support those at risk of falling behind.

Unemployment rates for young Californians have climbed since 2022, and roughly 11 percent of 16–24-year-olds were not in school or working in 2024—lower than post-Great Recession but higher than pre-pandemic. Young adults today tend to live with parents longer, marry later, and have fewer children than in earlier generations. Yet more are earning a bachelor’s degree and fewer are out of school or work than in the past.

Are young adults today achieving key education and work milestones?

Recent generations enter the workforce later—fewer teens work today, and fewer young adults up to age 22 are employed. But those who are 24 and older are more likely to work than prior generations—due in part to having earned more degrees but also to having benefited from the strong economy that emerged after the Great Recession.

About half of Californians aged 24 are employed (56%), 16 percent are working while in school, and 10 percent are still in school (and not working). A gap between men and women exists around joining the workforce, but it has narrowed: men (81%) are slightly more likely to work than women (78%) at age 24. Close to half of white and Latino young men are in the labor force, with lower rates for Black men, Black women, and Latina women. By age 30, labor force participation rises for men (88%) and women (80%) in recent generations.

Recent generations of young adults are staying in school longer. About a third have earned a bachelor’s or advanced degree by age 24, an increase by half from earlier generations. A similar share had at least some college by age 24 (62% among those born in the mid-80s compared to 67% of those born in 1997–99) but more today have earned a bachelor’s degree or more.

Who are the young adults not in school or working?

Compared to earlier generations, young Californians today are in school and/or work at higher rates. About 12 percent of 20-year-olds born between 2003–2005 were not in school or work—also known as disconnected—compared to 16 percent of those born between 1985–87. While these rates increase as young adults age, they are still lower in recent generations (17%) compared to those born earlier (22%).

In earlier generations, most young adults out of school and work were women, but today men are the majority at age 16 and 20; the gender divide evens out at age 24. Black and Latino Californians had higher rates at ages 20 and 24 than their white and Asian peers. Despite these disparities, the overall rates of young adults out of school and work improved somewhat for all groups with each generation. Most also tend to return to school or work within a year. But 6 percent of men and 2 percent of women aged 20–22 remain out for longer.

Students in families with higher incomes have much lower odds of being out of school and work at age 21–22, according to data from the High School Longitudinal Study; together with parental education and employment, income explains much of the disparity across race/ethnic groups. Better grades and staying in school also point to a lower likelihood of being out of school and work.

What strategies help keep young adults connected to school and work?

Economic conditions account for young adults staying in school longer and working at higher rates today than in the past, highlighting how labor market conditions in early adulthood matter. Policies to improve initial job placements and educational opportunities are crucial to expand on these gains.

The biggest rise in disconnection happens around the end of high school. Providing personalized academic or behavioral supports may help students finish school, while programs that connect schoolwork with college and career readiness can boost opportunities. Job training and workforce development programs, particularly those with integrated support and financial services, have helped connect young adults with the labor market. Longitudinal data sources, like California’s Cradle to Career data system, could help better identify those at risk of losing connection to school and/or work—and help us understand the pathways to bolster their trajectories.

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About the Authors

Julien Lafortune is a senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California, where he specializes in education and economics. He is also a member of the PPIC Economic Policy Center. His primary areas of focus include K–12 education finance, school infrastructure, human capital, and labor market policy. He has authored policy reports, briefs, presentations, and blogs on a variety of policy topics, including K–12 education, labor market issues, demographics, and housing markets. He has published academic research papers on school finance reforms and school capital investments in the American Economic Journal: Applied Economics and the American Economic Review: Papers and Proceedings. He holds a PhD in economics from the University of California, Berkeley.

Daniel Payares-Montoya is a research associate at the Public Policy Institute of California. He is a member of the PPIC Economic Policy Center, and he also contributes to the PPIC Higher Education Center. His research focuses on expanding economic opportunity through the labor market, the relation between the labor market and higher education, income inequality, climate-related jobs, and economic development. Before joining PPIC, he worked as a consultant for the World Bank, concentrating on green growth and green finance in developing countries, and as a researcher at the Center for Latin American Studies, University of California Berkeley, focusing on the socio-economic impact of globalization and industrialization in the Americas. He has also conducted research on productivity, education, and labor markets for Fedesarrollo, the Private Council on Competitiveness, and Proantioquia Foundation in Colombia. He holds a master’s degree in public policy from Universidad de Chile and a master’s degree in development practice from the University of California, Berkeley.

Sean Cremin is a research associate at the Public Policy Institute of California where he is a member of the Economic Policy Center. His research focuses on advancing upward mobility, reducing labor market disparities, and expanding socioeconomic opportunities through more equitable and effective economic policymaking. Prior to joining PPIC, he worked as a senior research associate at NORC at the University of Chicago where he supported evaluations of federally funded programs aimed at mitigating poverty and inequality. He holds a master’s degree in public affairs from Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs and a BA in politics, philosophy, and economics from Pomona College.

Sarah Bohn is vice president and director of the PPIC Economic Policy Center and senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California, where she holds the John and Louise Bryson chair in policy research. She is also a member of the PPIC Higher Education Center. As the founding director of the PPIC Economic Policy Center, she leads research and engagement to inform California policymaking to support greater opportunity and upward mobility for workers, families, and businesses statewide. A labor economist, her research focuses on the job market, workforce skills, and the role of education and government programs in upward mobility. Her other areas of expertise include immigration policy, poverty measurement, income inequality, and career technical education. Her work has been published in major academic journals, including the American Economic Review, Demography, American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, and The Review of Economics and Statistics. Previously she served as vice president of research at PPIC. She holds a PhD in economics from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Stephanie Barton is a senior editor at the Public Policy Institute of California. She edits research reports, blog posts, and other publications, working with staff to communicate complex messages to a wide readership. Before joining PPIC, she was a developmental editor for Sage Publications and for Wiley Publishing, and a technical writer for the Department of Energy. Early in her career, she worked as a book designer for Doubleday Books. She holds an MFA in creative writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts and a BA in studio art from Pomona College.