Which gender is more likely to go to college?
Asked by: Parker Nader | Last update: October 27, 2025Score: 4.2/5 (45 votes)
Women have outnumbered men among college students for decades, but the gap continues to widen. In 1979, about 200,000 more women were enrolled in college than men. By 2021, that difference had grown to about 3.1 million more women than men in college.
Which gender is most likely to go to university?
Gender. Women are much more likely to go to university than men and have been for many years. They are also more likely to complete their studies and gain a first or upper second-class degree.
Are boys or girls more likely to go to college?
Given these trends in college enrollment rates, it is not surprising that there are many more women than men on campuses. In 2021, men accounted for 42% of total undergraduate enrollment. The male share is slightly higher among full-time students at 44% and slightly lower among part-time students at 40%.
Is it harder to get into college as a male or female?
At top tech schools, acceptance rates for women are significantly higher than for men (e.g. 5.6% for women vs. 3.1% for men at MIT). However, at many other schools, including many Ivy League schools, acceptance rates for men are significantly higher than for women (e.g. 4.2% for women vs. 6.9% for men at Brown).
Who is more likely to go to college?
Women over the age of 25 are 20.15% more likely to enroll in higher education than men and 19.1% more likely to earn a degree. 74.3% of male college students attend public institutions; 25.7% attend private schools. 71.4% of female students attend public institutions; 28.6% attend private schools.
The University Gender Gap You Might Not Expect
What is the college rate by gender?
Today, 47% of U.S. women ages 25 to 34 have a bachelor's degree, compared with 37% of men. The share of young women with a bachelor's degree has increased by 22 percentage points since 1995, from 25% to 47%. Over the same period, men have seen a smaller increase (12 points, from 25% to 37%).
Who is least likely to go to college?
According to recent figures, higher education enrollment rates among high school completers immediately following high school were lowest for students who were American Indian/Alaska Native (55%), followed closely by individuals identifying as Black (58%), and Hispanic (66%).
What gender is more successful in college?
College Graduation Rates
Nationally, the six-year graduation rate in 2022 was 64.9%. The graduation rate for women (67.9%) was more than 6 percentage points higher than for men (61.3%).
What gender drops out of college more?
College Dropout Rates by Gender
They further claim that: In public universities, 66.2% of women graduate compared to 60.2% of men. In private nonprofit colleges, 71.9% more women graduate than 64.6% of men.
Is it easier to get into Harvard as a girl?
In fact, Cornell, Princeton, and the University of Pennsylvania have a higher acceptance rate for female applicants. Harvard is the only school that is evenly split down the middle. However, it's still likely that each of these schools are still tipping the scales in favor of men.
What is the gender ratio at Harvard?
Harvard University has a total undergraduate enrollment of 7,110 (fall 2023), with a gender distribution of 47.1% male students and 52.9% female students. At this school, 97% of the students live in college-owned, -operated or -affiliated housing and 3% of students live off campus.
What do most girls major in?
Female-dominated majors tend to be concentrated in fields related to education, certain subsets of healthcare, and the social sciences.
Does gender affect college acceptance?
More, and more qualified, women apply to top colleges than men. While this is not the case at all colleges, it is true of admissions as a whole. When admissions officers try to build a balanced class, they have no choice but to evaluate female applicants more harshly, and are more likely to give male applicants a pass.
What gender is academically smarter?
There is no statistically significant difference between the average IQ scores of men and women. Average differences have been reported, however, on some tests of mathematics and verbal ability in certain contexts.
Which gender has a higher GPA?
Throughout high school and college, female students generally earn better grades than male students and are rated as having better competencies and skills. Better grades in high school lead women to be better prepared for college academics, and therefore more likely to enroll in and complete higher education degrees.
Which gender is most competitive?
Research suggests that men are more competitive than women. This gender difference appears in childhood, as evidenced by the playtime activities that girls and boys choose, and increases through puberty and adulthood.
Which gender is more educated?
For over 30 years, American women have largely surpassed men in earning a bachelor's degree. In this post, we look at how educational attainment and gender manifest themselves specifically in the labor force.
What gender dominates college?
In California, 56% of undergraduates at the state's public universities and community colleges are women, as are 54% of undergraduates at nonprofit colleges and 63% at for-profit colleges.
Which race has the highest dropout rate?
In 2022, the high school drop out rate for American Indian/Alaska Natives in the United States was 8.1 percent -- the highest rate of any ethnicity. In comparison, the high school drop out rate for Asians was 1.6 percent.
Which gender is less likely to go to college?
Young women are more likely to be enrolled in college today than young men, and among those ages 25 and older, women are more likely than men to have a four-year college degree. The gap in college completion is even wider among younger adults ages 25 to 34.
What gender is most successful?
Women are statistically outperforming men in various categories, but this has not always been the case. For centuries, boys seemingly held the upper hand in various facets of life like academics and careers. However, a shift is underway, with girls increasingly outperforming boys in education and the workforce.
Which degree is most female dominated?
As of 2022, women most frequently earned bachelor's degrees in the health and medical sciences (accounting for 19% of all bachelor's degrees earned by women), followed by the behavioral/social sciences (16%) and business (15%).
Which race goes to college the most?
In 2022, the college enrollment rate for 18- to 24-year-olds was higher for those who were Asian (61 percent) than for those of all other racial/ethnic groups: White (41 percent) Two or more races (36 percent) Black (36 percent)
Why are boys not going to college?
Athletic accomplishments are often more valued than academic ones, and boys are more likely than girls to spend hours every day on video games. They're also more likely to question the value of a college degree, in part because they haven't been socialized as consistently to please the teacher and follow the rules.
What is the lowest GPA to stay in college?
Colleges and universities expect students to earn a minimum GPA to maintain enrollment. While this differs by institution, many require a 2.0—or C average. Falling below 2.0 often means you'll be placed on academic probation until you can raise your GPA. If you're unable to do so, your institution may dismiss you.