Fast Facts: Degrees conferred by race/ethnicity and sex (72)

Degrees conferred by race/ethnicity and sex

Question:
What is the percentage of degrees conferred by race/ethnicity and sex?

Response:

The percentage of degrees conferred by race/ethnicity and sex varied by level of degree in 2021–22.

Associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctor’s degrees conferred by postsecondary institutions, by race/ethnicity and sex of student: 2021–22
Level of degree and sex	Total	American Indian/ Alaska Native	Asian	Black	Hispanic	Pacific Islander	White	Two or more races
Level of degree and sex	Total	Percentage distribution of degrees conferred to U.S. citizens and permanent residents
Associate’s degree	989,762	0.8	6.5	12.3	26.7	0.3	49.3	4.0
Male	367,458	0.7	7.4	10.1	25.5	0.3	51.9	4.1
Female	622,304	0.9	6.1	13.6	27.4	0.3	47.8	4.0
Bachelor’s degree	1,920,632	0.5	8.9	10.4	17.0	0.2	58.8	4.3
Male	786,001	0.4	9.7	8.8	15.6	0.2	61.0	4.2
Female	1,134,631	0.5	8.3	11.5	17.9	0.2	57.3	4.3
Master’s degree	764,026	0.5	8.2	13.0	13.3	0.2	61.6	3.3
Male	267,254	0.4	9.5	11.0	12.6	0.2	62.9	3.3
Female	496,772	0.5	7.4	14.0	13.6	0.2	60.9	3.3
Doctor’s degree¹	178,546	0.4	12.6	10.4	9.9	0.2	63.1	3.5
Male	72,764	0.4	12.9	8.0	9.8	0.2	65.2	3.5
Female	105,782	0.4	12.5	11.9	10.0	0.2	61.6	3.5

¹ Includes Ph.D., Ed.D., and comparable degrees at the doctoral level, as well as such degrees as M.D., D.D.S., and law degrees that were classified as first-professional degrees prior to 2010–11.
NOTE: Data in this table represent the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Data are for postsecondary institutions participating in Title IV federal financial aid programs and U.S. service academies. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Reported racial/ethnic distributions of students by level of degree, field of study, and sex were used to estimate race/ethnicity for students whose race/ethnicity was not reported. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.

SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics. (2024). Table 321.20. Associate’s degrees conferred by postsecondary institutions, by race/ethnicity and sex of student: Selected academic years, 1976–77 through 2021–22; Table 322.20. Bachelor’s degrees conferred by postsecondary institutions, by race/ethnicity and sex of student: Selected academic years 1976–77 through 2021–22; Table 323.20. Master’s degrees conferred by postsecondary institutions, by race/ethnicity and sex of student: Selected academic years, 1976–77 through 2021–22; and Table 324.20. Doctor’s degrees conferred by postsecondary institutions, by race/ethnicity and sex of student: Selected academic years, 1976–77 through 2021–22 [Data tables]. In Digest of education statistics. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved April 24, 2024, from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d23/tables/dt23_321.20.asp, https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d23/tables/dt23_322.20.asp, https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d23/tables/dt23_323.20.asp, and https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d23/tables/dt23_324.20.asp.

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