Higher Education: Gaps in Access and Persistence Study

Executive Summary
Numerous studies, including those of the National Center
for Education Statistics (NCES), have documented
persistent gaps between the educational attainment of
White males and that of Black, Hispanic, American
Indian/Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian/Pacific
Islander males. Further, there is evidence of growing
gaps by sex within these racial/ethnic groups, as females
participate and persist in education at higher rates than
their male counterparts (Aud, Fox, and KewalRamani
2010; Aud et al. 2011). In the interest of formulating
policies to address these gaps, Congress directed the
U.S. Department of Education to produce a report
documenting the gaps in access to and completion of
higher education by minority males and to outline
specific policies that can help address these gaps (Higher
Education Opportunity Act, H.R. 4137, 110th Cong.
§1109, 2008). NCES was directed to produce the Higher
Education: Gaps in Access and Persistence Study, a statistical
report that documents the scope and nature of the gaps by
sex and by race/ethnicity.
The primary focus of the Higher Education: Gaps
in Access and Persistence Study is to examine gaps in
educational participation and attainment between
male Blacks, Hispanics, Native Hawaiians/Pacific
Islanders, and American Indians/Alaska Natives and
their female counterparts and to examine gaps between
males in these racial/ethnic groups and White males.
The secondary focus of the report is to examine overall
sex and racial/ethnic differences. In addition to these
descriptive indicators, this report also includes descriptive
multivariate analyses of variables that are associated
with male and female postsecondary attendance and
attainment.
Postsecondary attendance rates are generally lower for
youth from lower socioeconomic backgrounds and
those from various racial/ethnic groups (e.g., Blacks and
Hispanics) when compared to Whites and Asians (Aud
et al. 2011). In 2010, as in every year since 1980, a lower
percentage of male than female 18- to 24-year-olds were
enrolled either in college or graduate school (39 vs. 47
percent). This pattern was also observed for Whites (43
vs. 51 percent), Blacks (31 vs. 43 percent), Hispanics (26
vs. 36 percent), American Indians (24 vs. 33 percent),
and persons of two or more races (40 vs. 49 percent). In
addition to college enrollment differences, there are gaps
in postsecondary attainment for males and females. For
instance, among first-time students seeking bachelor’s
degrees who started full time at a 4-year college in 2004,
a higher percentage of females than males completed
bachelor’s degrees within 6 years (61 vs. 56 percent)—a
pattern that held across all racial/ethnic groups.
This report will document the scope and nature of a
number of differences between sex and racial/ethnic
groups in education preparation and achievement as
well as differences in postsecondary access, persistence,
and attainment between males and females within and
across racial/ethnic groups. The report presents indicators
that include the most recently available, nationally
representative data from NCES, other federal agencies,
and selected items from the ACT and the College Board.
The report draws on multiple sources that represent
different years and different populations.
Demographic Context
Children in Poverty and Language Minorities
In 2010, some 21 percent of children under age 18 were
living in poverty, and the poverty rate for children living
with a female parent with no spouse present was
44 percent. The poverty rate for children living with
a female parent with no spouse present was higher for
American Indian children (53 percent) than for children
of all other racial/ethnic groups (with the exception of
Black and Hispanic children). There were no measurable
differences in male versus female poverty rates for children
living with a female parent with no spouse present.
Also, in 2010, some 11.8 million children ages 5 to
17 (about 22 percent of the school-age population)
spoke a language other than English at home (2.7 million
speaking English with difficulty). The percentage who
spoke a language other than English at home and spoke
English with difficulty was higher for Hispanics
(16 percent) and Asians (15 percent) than for Alaska
Natives (7 percent), Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders
(5 percent), American Indians (2 percent), children of two
or more races (2 percent), Whites (1 percent), and Blacks
(1 percent). No measurable differences were observed
between males and females overall. However, higher
percentages of Asian and Hispanic males (16 percent each)
spoke a language other than English at home and spoke
English with difficulty than females (14 and 15 percent,
respectively) in their racial/ethnic group. In addition, a
higher percentage of Hispanic school-age children born
outside of the United States spoke a non-English language
at home and spoke English with difficulty than did their
counterparts born within the United States (35 vs.
13 percent).
Parents’ Educational Attainment and
Involvement in Education
In 2010, about 11 percent of children between the ages
of 6 and 18 lived in a household where neither parent
had earned at least a high school credential (either a
diploma or an equivalency credential such as a General
Educational Development [GED] certificate). The
percentage of children with parents who had not earned
a high school credential was 11 percent for both males
and females. Also, no measurable differences by sex
within racial/ethnic groups were found at any of the
three levels of educational attainment examined (less
than high school completion, high school completion,
Executive Summary
Executive Summary v