Defining the Net Generation by Birth Date

Although the birth dates used to define this generation have varied in different surveys, there seems to be some agreement in the literature—typically between 1982 and 2003 (standard error of ± 2years). Those students are now 6 to 27 years old. That translates educationally into 1st grade through graduate school. However, some authors have lumped them into much narrower (1978–1984) and wider ranges (1976–2003), and everywhere in between.
The birth-date range affects estimates of the size of this generation. Current figures range from 80 to 90 million, about a 3rd of the U.S. population. It is the largest generation in history, even larger than the Baby Boomers. The eldest members have graduated college and are either entering graduate school and/or the workplace in droves. They are "flooding" the workplace, which has presented employers with a whole new set of issues to deal with 4 different generations, working side by side. Hummm. Those issues will be dealt with in a future blog.

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