opinion
In addition to the disregard for the rule of law that illegal immigration shows, another consequence is a dramatic decline in the educational level of new immigrants.
James Breeden, New York Post
Much of the discussion about the ongoing border crisis focuses on crime, drug importation, and human trafficking.
However, these issues are important and should not distract from the fact that the influx of immigrants is increasing the total number of immigrants, both legal and illegal, to unprecedented levels.
It also contributes to a significant decline in the educational level of new arrivals.
This decline affects workers, taxpayers, and our ability to assimilate and integrate so many people.
The government collects the Current Population Survey each month, primarily to measure employment. The oft-cited household survey indicates that something unusual is going on.
Since President Biden took office, the foreign-born population in the country has increased from 45 million in January 2021 to 51.4 million in February of this year, an increase of 6.4 million people and a new record high.
Never before have foreign-born people grown so rapidly.
The foreign-born share of the U.S. population, at 15.5%, is the highest in U.S. history, surpassing the previous record of 14.8% set in 1890 during the so-called Great Wave of Immigration.
My colleague Karen Zeigler and I estimate that 3.7 million of the 6.4 million increases under the Biden administration are due to newly settled illegal immigrants in the country.
These numbers are net additions, not new arrivals.
The number of new entrants is much higher, but this is offset by the number of existing population members who return home or die each year.
These numbers also don't take into account any numbers missed in the survey. But even by itself, the numbers are huge.
In addition to the disregard for the rule of law that illegal immigration shows, another consequence is a dramatic decline in the educational level of new immigrants.
Illegal immigrants tend to be much less educated than legal immigrants, in part because they are not required to meet the same standards as legal immigrants and because most countries of origin have lower average human capital.
However, some decline in educational standards appears to have begun before the current border crisis, although it is not clear why.
Among adult immigrants who said they came to the U.S. in the past two years, 41% had a bachelor's degree or higher, down from 55% of new arrivals through 2018.
The percentage of newcomers with a high school diploma or less increased from 29% in 2018 to 44% in 2024.
Decades of research have shown that education level is an important factor in determining occupation, income, tax liability, and propensity to use welfare.
low income
Of course, immigrants with low education are burdened financially, not because they are lazy and don't work, but because they earn only a modest wage and pay relatively little tax, even if they pay it on the books. There is a tendency.
Their lower incomes mean that they, or often their U.S.-born dependent children, also qualify for welfare programs.
The arrival of so many relatively unskilled immigrants also means more competition for jobs for less-educated Americans, who are already the poorest workers.
The effects of declining education can also have intergenerational effects.
One of the best predictors of whether a person will graduate from high school or attend college is whether their parents graduated from high school.
The decline in immigrant education will almost certainly have some impact on second-generation outcomes.
The current scale of immigration to the United States (legal and illegal) poses significant challenges across many issue areas, from housing and schools to workplaces and health care.
It can also overwhelm the assimilation process.
A sharp decline in the educational attainment of new immigrants exacerbates the challenges in both the short and long term.
Of course, none of this is inevitable.
We can enforce laws, admit fewer immigrants, and place more emphasis on skills when choosing immigrants.
It is certainly possible to build a better immigration system for the country.
Stephen Camarota is director of research at the Center for Immigration Studies.
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