Education Management

So what is your city’s education level? What about tech level? In addition to showing your city’s current enrollment, the info tab within the Education menu also shows your city’s current education and tech level, as represented by grayed-out icons.

These icons will slowly fill in as the city’s education and tech levels increase. In this section we explain how these two levels operate and their correlation to education and industry. We also look at transportation considerations and the science projects offered by the University.

Knowledge: Education Level

Access the Education data map to see education levels in your city.

Education level is a measure of how much education you currently have in the residential sections of your city. The graphical representation (in the Education menu’s info tab) is an average of the individual residential buildings. The number of green graduate cap icons shown can be increased by sending more students to school.

The education level only increases when students return from school to their houses, so Dormitory students and commuting students from the region do not contribute to this.

The benefits vary with the level of education in the building—the individual unit, not the average. At education level one, the house has a reduced chance of creating a blue collar criminal, helping keep your streets safe. Level two sees a reduction in power and water usage, putting less strain on these utilities.

There are no additional benefits at level three, but at level four residential buildings see another reduction in power and water usage. At level five, residents install solar panels on their roof, greatly reducing the building’s need for power.

Skill: Tech Level

Click on an industrial building to see its current tech level. High tech buildings won’t show up until a University has been built in the region.

Tech level is essentially education for the industrial sections of your city. Higher tech levels provide opportunities for clean and high tech industry to be created. If a Community College and University are present in the region, you’ll start to see clean (tech level 2) and high tech (tech level 3) industrial buildings when the appropriate levels of tech are reached.

Higher tech buildings create more tax revenue, making them worth the effort and expense to promote higher education. The more students that are present in the Community College or University, the more tech education is produced. This type of education is only dependent on the number of students, not their origin, so local, commuting, and Dormitory students all contribute to this production.

The benefit of education on industry is very different than on residential. Instead of providing a bonus to the buildings, it allows higher tech (based on the type of higher education placed) to be created. While these higher tech industrial buildings produce more tax revenue, they also require tech education to remain in business.

The education provided by the higher education schools (Community College and University) act as both catalyst for creation and as upkeep. So keep those higher education institutions filled to meet the demand of clean and high tech industrial buildings.

Transportation

Don’t be surprised if your Community College and University draw heavy traffic. Rely on mass transit to help alleviate some of the congestion.

In a perfect city, every student could walk to the school of their choice, but it isn’t feasible to construct a school in every neighborhood. When students can’t reach a Grade School or High School on foot, they require a school bus to get to and from campus. Provide plenty of school buses and plop School Bus Stops throughout your city to encourage every kid in your city to get to school.

Community Colleges and Universities function a little differently since neither have school buses. Instead, most students drive to school when they can’t reach a campus on foot. Given the large number of desks offered by these schools, expect traffic problems around these institutions. Therefore, build the Community College and University next to an avenue to accommodate the traffic. Also, consider mass transit options such as buses and streetcars. Equipping the University with a Dormitory or two can also reduce traffic, keeping most students on campus and off the roads.

University Research Projects

Click on the University to see the progress toward completing the current research project. Not going fast enough? Bring in more students.

The University is a jewel to behold. But when you’re not admiring the impressive architecture and well-kept grounds, put those eggheads to work on a research project. Click on the University to open its window, then select the Start Research Project button. This brings up an additional window prompting you to choose from ten different projects.

Each project has a different cost and prerequisite, often requiring the construction of an additional school at the University. For example, you need a School of Medicine before you can pursue the Surgical Center project. Once completed, each project unlocks a specific module or one of the Great Works, like the Solar Farm or Space Center.

These completed research projects are shared throughout the region, giving every city access to the unlocked technology. But projects aren’t completed instantly—it takes time to do all that research. The more students in the University, the faster the project is completed. So if a project is stalled or simply taking too long, consider adding a Dormitory and additional schools to increase the number of students on campus.

Education Achievements

Icon	Name	Criteria
	No Child Left Behind	Plop 20 School Bus Stops in one city.
	SimCity University!	Have a University with each School module.