Economic mobility is central to the promise of the American Dream.   Historically, Boston has offered opportunities for economic advancement to its residents, especially to newcomers.  In 2000, the poverty rate for foreign-born non-citizens in Boston was 26%, while foreign-born residents with citizenship, who have participated in the economy longer, had a poverty rate of 16.7%, not only lower than foreign-born non-citizens, but lower than native-born Bostonians. 

Even though Boston’s economy has cooled in the past few years, the recent boom has created new jobs in industries that did not exist a few years ago.  However, most jobs in new sectors, such as the information technology and bio-tech sectors, require a minimum two-year college or Associate’s degree. 

Education contributes crucially to economic mobility.  The region’s community colleges offer economic mobility to residents and low-wage workers by providing access to the next rung of a career ladder, and their graduation rates serve as a proxy measure of economic mobility between the Census years.

See also Technology section.