Washington ? The number of women with six-figure incomes is rising at a much faster pace than it is for men.

Nationwide, about one in 18 women working full time earned $100,000 or more in 2009, a jump of 14 percent over two years, according to new census figures. In contrast, one in seven men made that much, up just 4 percent.

The swelling ranks of well-paid women workers are largely attributable to almost three decades of growth in the number of women with the academic credentials to land good jobs. Women now outnumber men at almost every level of higher education, with three women attending college and graduate school for every two men. They get more master’s degrees and more PhDs. Most law school students are women, as are almost half of all medical students.

“We’re finally bearing the fruit from women getting so much higher education in the United States,” said Robert Drago, director of research at the Institute for Women’s Policy Research. “It’s the result of women entering into professional managerial careers.”