In the US, why are there more women in college than men?

Question

I heard that in the US, there are a lot more women in college than men. Is this really true? If so, what cause this to happen? Why are there less men in college now?

I hope I can get some intelligent response here instead of sexist crap in the other section.

Thank you for yout time.

Answer 1

Man, If this is true, I need to go back to college. I graduated college 20+ years ago and that was not the case.

Answer 2

Men make up 42% of the college population - which means that women make up the other 58%; that's a significant difference but not exactly 2 girls for every guy.

50.9 percent of the traditional college aged population in the US is female. Only very slightly more women than men so this doesn't account for the difference. A statistician would likely point to chance with numbers this close on a population this large.

We should look to at not just how many are in college but what's the separation by degree completion. 28% of adults over 25 have a bachelor's degree. 48% of those are men and 52% are women. Much less difference but it points to another question...

Why, when women enroll in college at a rate much higher than men, does the gap narrow to near equality when we look at graduation rate?

It may well be that some of this can be attributed to "sexist crap" of a sort. Is the reason that the women are quicker to leave school for family than are men?

Answer 3

They're not sure why but apparently, more women from lower and middle income areas are enrolling at a significantly higher rate than their male counterparts. The trend doesn't seem to be true for men and women in upper income areas (where the enrollment has been pretty steady).

It might have something to do with new opportunities becoming available that target women in lower income areas, although I have not heard of any specifically. But I have heard that young women in lower income areas are becoming increasingly more optimistic about their education and they tend to be more likely to take advantage of educational opportunities that come around than their male counterparts.

I forgot to mention another possibility. Women in the U.S. are having fewer children (smaller families) then they had 30 years ago and they also have better access to daycare. This might explain why so many older women are enrolling - they have fewer kids to raise and more resources to help raise them which gives them more opportunities to go to college. I'm not so sure I believe this view though because it mostly applies to women who can afford and have access to these resources. And if that's true, then there should be a significant increase in enrollment of women from upper income areas.

Answer 4

I can't believe nobody has mentioned this yet, but think of it this way:

When you tell some eighteen year old girl who's just graduating high school that when it comes to college, here's a chance for them to legally and rightfully move away from home (sometimes to a completely different state), go live in a dorm or apartment with some roomates who they'll become friends with, go to a university with people that are all usually around their same age, get to go to clubs, get to join a sorority, get to go to sporting events, get to go to nearby college concerts, get to go hang out with their friends at coffee shops, get to go out with practically anyone they want in college whenever they want (and all that that applies), and all this is done without any interference from their parent(s) because they'll be hundreds of miles away, how can any girl say no to such an opportunity.

Oh and they'll be getting an education on the side too.

Yeah the college life from 18 to 22 is definitely any girls' heavenly dream thanks to the social activities listed above. It's why I feel there's a much higher ratio of girls to guys in college. Girls absolutely go with the intention of getting the degree for their future career, but one can't also ignore that they're also thinking about all the other benefits (listed above) that come with it.

Answer 5

I believe the difference is really not that large. It of course depends on the school. Major programs is where you'll really see a shift in gender proportions. Psychology, for instance, is overwhelming dominated by female students, while it's the opposite with engineering trades.

Answer 6

because there is a larger female population than there is male its demographics plain and simple