Why are College-Educated People Suddenly Fleeing Missouri?

I never did fully complete my college education and I live in Missouri which makes sense when you see a brand new study that shows the Show Me State is suddenly hemorrhaging residents with college degrees.

This stunning data comes from Hire a Helper which just computed where college-educated people are moving and where they are leaving. This is not good news for Missouri as the state needs more college-educated people for its workforce. Missouri ranked as one of the worst states where those with college degrees are fleeing.

Only South Dakota, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Louisiana had higher rates of the college-educated departing.

With blue representing states attracting the highly-educated and yellow reflecting those states where they're leaving, Missouri and the Midwest in general is very yellow.

It's a curious number considering that the University of Missouri resides in the heart of the state and Mizzou attracts many who grew up in Missouri for their college education.

The big picture takeaway is the states with lower taxes seem to be attracting the smarter up-and-comers. When it comes to specific cities where the college-educated are moving to, both Nashville, Tennessee and Sarasota, Florida rank at the top.

I think there is more than just tax brackets at work here. Looking at the number of those who are leaving Missouri it appears to me that lifestyle changes are also playing a big part in that decision. Many states with warmer year-round climates and more outdoor activities seem to be winning the battle to attract the college-educated to make homes there.