Us College Enrollment: Undergrad And Grad Student Numbers

In the 2022-2023 academic year, there were 15.397 million undergraduate students enrolled in US colleges and universities, a 7% decrease from 2019. This figure includes 1,057,188 foreign-born students. Undergraduate enrollment has been declining since 2010, when it peaked at 21.02 million.

In the same year, there were 2.91 million graduate students, making up 17.13% of all postsecondary students.

Undergraduate enrollment in US colleges and universities

However, it is projected that between 2021 and 2031, undergraduate enrollment will increase by 9%, reaching 16.8 million students. This expected increase may be attributed to the projected rise in both male and female enrollment by 9% each.

Undergraduate enrollment rates vary across US colleges and universities. For instance, in fall 2023, undergraduate enrollment at California State University-Fullerton was nearly 37,000, while Arizona State University enrolled the most undergraduates of any school, with almost 65,200 students.

In terms of demographics, female students made up 58% of total undergraduate enrollment in fall 2021, while male students accounted for 42%. Between 2010 and 2021, male enrollment decreased by 17%, while female enrollment decreased by 13%. Notably, male enrollment saw its most significant single-year decline in 2020, dropping by 7%, while female enrollment witnessed its largest yearly decline in 2021, falling by 3%.

When examining undergraduate enrollment by race and ethnicity in fall 2021:

• 7.8 million students were White
• 3.3 million were Hispanic
• 1.9 million were Black
• 1.1 million were Asian
• 663,100 were of Two or more races
• 107,000 were American Indian/Alaska Native
• 41,000 were Pacific Islander

Trends in undergraduate enrollment between fall 2010 and fall 2021 varied across racial and ethnic groups. During this period, enrollment decreased for American Indian/Alaska Native students (by 40%), Pacific Islander students (by 29%), White students (by 28%), and Black students (by 27%). In contrast, enrollment increased for students of Two or more races (by 126%), Hispanic students (by 30%), and Asian students (by 7%).

US college graduation rates

Overview

The US college graduation rate has been on an upward trajectory over the years. In 2023, the US college graduation rate was 62.2%. From 2008 to 2021, the average college graduation rate in the US was 60% for four-year schools.

Graduation Rates by Degree Type

Bachelor's degrees are the most sought-after, with 2 million conferred in 2022. 49.1% of all college graduates earn bachelor's degrees, while 24.5% earn associate degrees.

Graduation Rates by Institution Type

Among four-year institutions, for-profit schools have the lowest graduation rates. At two-year colleges, private institutions have higher graduation rates than public institutions.

Graduation Rates by Gender

Female students graduate from college at rates 3-7% higher than male students. In 2023, about 66% of women students and 58% of men students graduated from college.

Graduation Rates by Race

Longstanding racial and ethnic disparities in graduation statistics are declining, meaning a larger proportion of students are People of Color. White, Asian, and non-US resident students have above-average graduation rates.

Historical Graduation Statistics

In 1900, 27,410 bachelor's degrees were earned by college graduates nationwide. In 1910, 2.7% of adults over 25 years of age had a postsecondary degree. By 1940, 3.4 million, or 4.6% of US adults over 25, were four-year college graduates.

College graduation rates by school type

The graduation rates for students obtaining an undergraduate degree in the US vary depending on the type of institution and the degree being pursued. Here is an overview of the graduation rates by school type:

Graduation Rates at Four-Year Institutions:

• Private Nonprofit Institutions: Private nonprofit four-year institutions have higher graduation rates than other types of schools. The graduation rate for private nonprofit schools was reported to be 68% in 2020, according to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).
• Private For-Profit Institutions: For-profit four-year schools have the lowest graduation rates among four-year institutions. The NCES reported a graduation rate of 29% for private for-profit schools in 2020.
• Public Institutions: The graduation rate for public four-year colleges was 63% in 2020, according to the NCES.

Graduation Rates at Two-Year Institutions:

• Private Institutions: Private two-year colleges, both nonprofit and for-profit, tend to have higher graduation rates compared to public two-year institutions. The graduation rate for private two-year schools was 43.4% in 2022, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center (NSCRC).
• Public Institutions: Public two-year colleges, often called community colleges, typically have lower graduation rates than four-year schools. The NCES reported a graduation rate of 30.3% for two-year public institutions.

It is worth noting that community college students sometimes transfer to four-year institutions to complete their degrees, which can impact the graduation rates at two-year schools. Additionally, graduation rates can vary across states, student demographics, and other factors.

Community college graduation rates

The number of undergraduate and graduate students in colleges and universities in the United States has been declining. In fall 2022, there were 15.397 million undergraduate students enrolled, a 7% decline from 2019. The number of total enrolled postsecondary students declined by 0.4% from 2021 to 2022. Preliminary data indicate that total postsecondary enrollment in Spring 2024 increased by 2.6% over the past year.

Community colleges, in particular, have seen a 37% decline in enrollment since 2010. Two-year institutions have the worst completion rates of any university or college, with nearly half of students dropping out within a year. Only slightly more than 40% finish within six years.

However, these statistics may not accurately reflect the success of community colleges. For example, some students who transfer to four-year institutions before earning their associate's degree are considered "dropouts" statistically, even though they moved on to further their education. One-fourth of all college students who begin at a community college go on to a four-year institution, and 60% of those students graduate with a bachelor's degree.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the six-year graduation rate for first-time, full-time undergraduate students who began seeking a bachelor's degree at four-year institutions in 2014 was 64%. The graduation rate was 63% at public institutions, 68% at private nonprofit institutions, and 29% at private for-profit institutions. The overall six-year graduation rate was 60% for males and 67% for females.

Community colleges have implemented various programs to improve retention and graduation rates. For example, Northern Virginia Community College requires students to maintain a continuous relationship with counselors to ensure they receive the support they need. Other colleges have implemented transfer student programs and early alert referrals to help students stay on track.

College graduation rates by gender

In the United States, women are more likely to graduate from college than men, and this gap is growing. In 2020, women made up 58% of all college students, and this number has been increasing over the years. In 1979, around 200,000 more women were enrolled in college than men, but by 2021, this difference had grown to around 3.1 million. This trend is reflected in high school graduation rates and the percentage of high school graduates who go on to attend college or university.

In the academic year of 2020, the six-year graduation rate for first-time, full-time undergraduate students who began seeking a bachelor's degree was 64%. This figure was higher for women (67%) than for men (61%). This gap is also seen in the graduation rates of different racial groups. For example, in 2024, 47% of US women aged 25 to 34 had a bachelor's degree, compared to 37% of men. This gap is also evident in Black and Hispanic students, with Black women 12 percentage points more likely to graduate within six years than Black men, and Hispanic women nine points more likely than Hispanic men.

The gender gap in college graduation rates is also larger than the racial/ethnic differences in graduation rates in some states. In 16 states, women had a college graduation rate of 70% or higher, while men achieved this rate in only two states. Although racial/ethnic disparities in college success receive a lot of attention in the press and by higher education leaders, the graduation gender gap exceeded the difference between the graduation rates of white and Hispanic students in several states. For example, in Florida, the women's graduation rate was 10 percentage points higher than men's, while the difference between white and Hispanic students was only two points.

Several factors have been identified as contributors to these gender gaps. One factor is that girls and women tend to have better academic records than boys and men from an early age. Girls significantly outperform boys in reading tests in the early grades, and they also complete more college-preparatory courses than boys in high school. Additionally, a 2019 report from the US Department of Education showed that 46.4% of high school girls took either an AP or IB course, compared to only 37.8% of boys. Furthermore, 12% of high school girls participated in dual enrollment programs, compared to only 9.7% of boys.

Another factor could be the different reasons that men and women give for not attending or completing college. According to the Pew Research Center, about a third of men without a bachelor's degree say that they just didn't want to get one, while only about a quarter of women say the same. Men were also more likely to say that they didn't need a four-year degree for the job they wanted.

The differences between men and women in college participation and success have profound implications for the future composition of the nation's labour force and the economic well-being of individuals.

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