Stereotypes of immigrants to America abound, but what are they really like?

According to Census Bureau data:

• There are about 24 million foreign-born people in the U.S., both legally and illegally.

• Of those, about 2.8 million came here illegally, but were granted amnesty by the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act.

• As of 1990, there were an estimated 3.3 million to 5.5 million illegals here.

• This means that the vast majority of the foreign-born -- between 77 and 86 percent -- are here legally.

Proponents of stricter immigration laws believe these estimates understate the number of illegals; but if the numbers are correct, 8.7 percent of the U.S. population is foreign-born -- up from 7.9 percent in 1990. According to economist Julian Simon, this is at the lower end of the scale for Western democracies. In Australia, for example, 22.7 percent of the population was foreign-born in 1990; in Canada, it was 16 percent; and in France, it was 6.3 percent.

Critics might suggest that the majority of immigrants to countries like Australia are from Commonwealth or other English-speaking countries. The countries of origin of two-thirds of the illegal immigrants to the U.S. are Latin America and countries of the Caribbean.

Where do they settle?

• The Immigration and Naturalization Service believes that 85 percent of illegals live in the six states of California, New York, Texas, Florida, New Jersey and Illinois.

• In 1990, 93 percent of the foreign-born settled in urban areas -- primarily Los Angeles, New York, Miami, Chicago, Washington, Houston, San Francisco and Anaheim, California.

Today's immigrants are, on average, better educated than those in the past.

• Between 1970 and 1990, the average number of years of school for all immigrants grew 7 percent to 11.9 years -- compared to a 15 percent increase to 13.2 years for native-born Americans.

• Almost 40 percent of those from Latin America have fewer than nine years of education; Europeans and Canadians, 20 percent; and Asians, 15 percent.

• While only seven percent of native-born Americans have advanced degrees, 15 percent of Asians do; nine percent of Europeans, and four percent of Latin Americans.

The longer immigrants are here, the more they earn. More recent immigrants have average household incomes of $31,100, compared to $37,700 for native households and $40,900 for those arriving before 1980. However, whether this is related to lower skills or simply a shorter time in the U.S. isn't clear.

Some 6.6 percent of immigrants utilize cash welfare programs, compared to 4.9 percent among native-born. Taking all types of welfare together, immigrants' participation rate is 20.7 percent, with 14.1 percent for the native-born.