According to the latest Unemployment Insurance statistics from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, by far the biggest percentage increase in Unemployment Insurance claims by educational attainment year over year in October in Minnesota were from people with a bachelor’s degree or higher. In October, 4,159 people with more than 15 years of education filed initial unemployment claims, compared to 3,323 such claims in 2024. That's a 25.2% increase from October 2024 to October 2025.
| Years of education completed |
2023 |
2024 |
2025 |
2023/ 2024 % Change |
2024/ 2025 % Change |
|
| Less than 12 years | 1,139 | 1,091 | 1,029 | -4.2% | -5.7% | |
| 12 years | 6,776 | 6,990 | 6,912 | 3.2% | -1.1% | |
| 13-15 years | 5,634 | 5,434 | 5,585 | -3.5% | 2.8% | |
| Over 15 years | 3,241 | 3,323 | 4,159 | 2.5% | 25.2% |
That highest educational attainment group, with more than 15 years of education, also had the biggest percentage increase in regular continuing claims year over year in October. Regular continuing claims are ongoing Unemployment Insurance claims by people who initially applied for unemployment in a previous month.
| Years of education completed |
2023 |
2024 |
2025 |
2023/ 2024 % Change |
2024/ 2025 % Change |
| Less than 12 years |
1,813 |
2,168 |
1,883 |
19.6% |
-13.1% |
| 12 years |
10,433 |
12,974 |
12,244 |
24.4% |
-5.6% |
| 13-15 years |
10,479 |
11,889 |
11,662 |
13.5% |
-1.9% |
| Over 15 years |
9,617 |
10,156 |
11,512 |
5.6% |
13.4% |
There isn’t likely one answer for what is causing this increase in unemployment claims by those with the highest educational attainment. Various factors could include recent mass layoffs that impacted a large number of people with higher educational attainment and fewer open positions requiring bachelor’s, master’s or higher degrees.
