Spectrum News: The nation sees an increasing number of Black college graduates

UC medical student Austin Thompson weighs in on the trend

Spectrum News examined an ongoing trend of Black adults obtaining college degrees in the United States. The U.S. Census Bureau found that 27.8% of Black people age 25 or older have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher.  That compares to 1% of the Black population having held a bachelor’s degree in 1940.

Austin Thompson, a 2019 UC Arts and Sciences graduate and third-year UC medical student, spoke with Spectrum News about the trend of Black adults obtaining bachelor’s degree and continuing that education with advanced degrees. Thompson is part of mentoring program in the UC College of Medicine aimed at aiding Black men in medical school. Evan Thompson, Austin’s younger brother, is a third-year business analytics at UC, also featured during the segment.

Listen to the full Spectrum News report online.

Learn more about Black men in medical school at UC.

Featured image shows from left to right, UC faculty members, Senu Apewokin, MD, and Alvin Crawford, MD, along with UC medical students Adam Butler, Austin Thompson and Michael Deal. 

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