Greater St. Louis is home to a skilled, diverse and well-trained workforce that benefits from one of the largest educational centers in the country.
Forty universities and colleges award more than 35,000 degrees each year. The institutions include leading research universities like Washington University and Saint Louis University as well as major public universities like the University of Missouri St. Louis, as well as a host of community colleges. Educational attainment is above the national average, with 35 percent of the workforce having earned a bachelor’s degree or higher. SmartAsset ranked St. Louis 9th best city in the country for college graduates.
The region also boasts numerous training and placement efforts, including the innovative LaunchCode apprenticeship program.
The area’s workforce comprises more than 1.4 million people. Average wages are slightly below the national average, while unemployment is below the national mark.
The region has one of the largest STEM workforces in the country, with more than 85,000 people employed in science and technology occupations, making up more than 6 percent of total employment. The St. Louis region has more people with PhDs in plant science than any metro area in the world. And the region has fostered an emerging ecosystem around the $1.75 billion western headquarters of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency being built in north St. Louis.
