How much is a college degree worth? Tens of thousands, the U.S. Census Bureau said in releasing data this week on educational attainment and earning power.

Adults with a master’s degree or higher earned four times more than adults with less than a high school education – $82,320, on average, versus $20,873, a U.S. Census survey found.

High school graduates earned an average of $31,070, while those with a bachelor’s degree earned an average of $56,788.

“Higher education’s no longer an end in itself. It’s a means to an end, which is getting a better job,” said Michael Chaney, a spokesman for the Ohio Board of Regents.

Of course, going to college isn’t the only factor affecting how much you make. Many things influence earning power, including personality, geographical region and occupation, Census statistician Sarah Crissey said. But education is at the top of the list.

The report – at www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/educ-attn.html – has a series of tables on educational levels and earnings, with breakdowns by age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, marital status, labor force status, occupation, industry and native country.

Among the highlights:

• Thirty-three percent of women age 25 to 29 had a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2007, compared with 26 percent of their male counterparts.

• Among workers with advanced degrees, Asians ($88,408) and non-Hispanic whites ($83,785) had higher average earnings than Hispanics ($70,432) and blacks ($64,834).

• More than half of Asians 25 and older (52 percent) had a bachelor’s degree or more, compared with 32 percent of non-Hispanic whites, 19 percent of blacks and 13 percent of Hispanics.

• Among adult Americans, 86 percent reported they had completed at least high school and 29 percent at least a bachelor’s degree.

• More foreign-born, naturalized citizens graduated from college (34 percent) than Americans born here (29 percent).