Educational attainment in the United States in the context of "Social class in the United States"

In sociology, the upper middle class is the social group constituted by higher status members of the middle class, in contrast to the lower middle class. The exact definition is debated. Max Weber defined it as well-educated professionals with postgraduate degrees and comfortable incomes.

The American upper middle class is primarily defined by using income, education, and occupation; it consists mostly of white-collar professionals with above-average personal incomes and advanced educational degrees and also a higher degree of autonomy in their work. The main occupational tasks of upper-middle-class individuals tend to center on conceptualizing, consulting, and instruction.

In sociology, the upper middle class of the United States is the social group constituted by higher-status members of the middle class in American society. This is in contrast to the term lower middle class, which refers to the group at the opposite end of the middle class scale. There is considerable debate as to how the upper middle class might be defined. According to Max Weber, the upper middle class consists of well-educated professionals with graduate degrees and comfortable incomes.

The American upper middle class is defined using income, education, occupation and the associated values as main indicators. In the United States, the upper middle class is defined as consisting of white-collar professionals who have above-average personal incomes, advanced educational degrees and a high degree of autonomy in their work, leading to higher job satisfaction. The main occupational tasks of upper middle class individuals tend to center on conceptualizing, consulting, and instruction.

Personal income is an individual's total earnings from wages, investment interest, and other sources. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a median weekly personal income of $1,196 for full-time workers in the United States in Q2 2025. For the year 2024, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates that the median annual earnings for all workers (people aged 15 and over with earnings) was $51,370; and more specifically estimates that median annual earnings for those who worked full-time, year round, was $63,360.

Income patterns are evident on the basis of age, sex, ethnicity and educational characteristics. In 2005 roughly half of all those with graduate degrees were among the nation's top 15% of income earners. Among different demographics (gender, marital status, ethnicity) for those over the age of 18, median personal income ranged from $3,317 for an unemployed, married Asian American female to $55,935 for a full-time, year-round employed Asian American male. According to the US Census, men tended to have higher income than women, while Asians and Whites earned more than African Americans and Hispanics.

In sociology, the upper middle class is the social group constituted by higher status members of the middle class, in contrast to the lower middle class. The definition is debated. Max Weber controversially defined it as the group of professionals with postgraduate degrees, but most Americans and Europeans identify income as the prime determiner of class.

The American upper middle class is primarily defined by using income, occupation, and education; it consists mostly of white-collar professionals with above-average personal incomes and a higher degree of autonomy in their work. The main occupational tasks of upper-middle-class individuals tend to center on conceptualizing, consulting, and instruction.