Why Do Women Outnumber Men in College Enrollment?
When the fall college enrollment numbers came in, we learned that, for every man, there are now almost two women attending college. These numbers indicate the highest recorded gender imbalance favoring women seen in U.S. college enrollment. The media discussion that ensued (for example, see this WSJ article) has, for the most part, sympathized with the young men and focused on identifying possible causes of such a stark gender imbalance. Questions were raised: Are girls receiving preferential treatment in high school and boys increasingly slipping through the cracks? Did the recent change in SAT scoring disproportionately favor female test-takers? Are the college admissions to blame?
In 1970, men outnumbered women in college, accounting for 59% of undergraduate enrollment in two-year institutions and 57% in four-year institutions. This was partly due to the high numbers of men enrolling for the purpose of avoiding conscription during the Vietnam War. In fact, the gender enrollment gap closed sharply as soon as the draft ended in 1973. By 1980, gender was perfectly balanced in four-year colleges, and women outnumbered men in two-year schools, accounting for 55% of enrollment in those institutions.
Since 1980, the female-to-male ratio in two-year college enrollment continued to increase until it hit about 1.4 in 1995, stabilizing at that point. The relative female-to-male ratio in four-year college enrollment, however, increased steadily throughout this time period, reaching 1.3 in the fall of 2019.
The first column reports the statistical results on education group indicators—the high school degree representing the baseline group. It shows that, on average, male workers with a high school degree made about $12 per hour (2.478 in logs) in 2015. Male workers with an associate degree made 22% more, and those with at least a bachelor’s degree earned 62% more.
The second column shows how these estimates differ for female workers. Women with only a high school diploma made about 24% less per hour compared with men in that same education group.
Relative to men, women saw an additional 5.3% return to getting an associate or a bachelor’s degree; that is, women with an associate degree made 28% more relative to women with only a high school degree, whereas women with a bachelor’s degree made 68% more.
When the fall college enrollment numbers came in, we learned that, for every man, there are now almost two women attending college. These numbers indicate the highest recorded gender imbalance favoring women seen in U.S. college enrollment. The media discussion that ensued (for example, see this WSJ article) has, for the most part, sympathized with the young men and focused on identifying possible causes of such a stark gender imbalance. Questions were raised: Are girls receiving preferential treatment in high school and boys increasingly slipping through the cracks? Did the recent change in SAT scoring disproportionately favor female test-takers? Are the college admissions to blame?
In 1970, men outnumbered women in college, accounting for 59% of undergraduate enrollment in two-year institutions and 57% in four-year institutions. This was partly due to the high numbers of men enrolling for the purpose of avoiding conscription during the Vietnam War. In fact, the gender enrollment gap closed sharply as soon as the draft ended in 1973. By 1980, gender was perfectly balanced in four-year colleges, and women outnumbered men in two-year schools, accounting for 55% of enrollment in those institutions.
Since 1980, the female-to-male ratio in two-year college enrollment continued to increase until it hit about 1.4 in 1995, stabilizing at that point. The relative female-to-male ratio in four-year college enrollment, however, increased steadily throughout this time period, reaching 1.3 in the fall of 2019.
The first column reports the statistical results on education group indicators—the high school degree representing the baseline group. It shows that, on average, male workers with a high school degree made about $12 per hour (2.478 in logs) in 2015. Male workers with an associate degree made 22% more, and those with at least a bachelor’s degree earned 62% more.
The second column shows how these estimates differ for female workers. Women with only a high school diploma made about 24% less per hour compared with men in that same education group.
Relative to men, women saw an additional 5.3% return to getting an associate or a bachelor’s degree; that is, women with an associate degree made 28% more relative to women with only a high school degree, whereas women with a bachelor’s degree made 68% more.
