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| 2021 Tables and Figures | All Years of Tables and Figures | Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest |
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| Table 219.73. | Percentage of high school dropouts among persons 16 to 24 years old (status dropout rate) and number and percentage distribution of 16- to 24-year-olds, by selected characteristics: Selected years, 2010 through 2020 |
| [Standard errors appear in parentheses] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Selected characteristic | Status dropout rate1 | 2020 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number of 16- to 24-year-olds (in thousands) | Percentage distribution of 16- to 24-year-olds | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | 2015 | 2019 | 2020 | Total population2 | Status dropouts only3 | Total population2 | Status dropouts only3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | ||||||||||||||||
| Total | 7.4 | (0.27) | 5.9 | (0.26) | 5.2 | (0.23) | 5.3 | (0.30) | 37,468 | (158.2) | 1,980 | (109.5) | 100.0 | (†) | 100.0 | (†) | ||||||||
| Sex | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Male | 8.5 | (0.40) | 6.3 | (0.37) | 5.9 | (0.34) | 6.2 | (0.41) | 18,808 | (59.3) | 1,165 | (77.6) | 50.2 | (0.13) | 58.9 | (2.02) | ||||||||
| Female | 6.3 | (0.28) | 5.4 | (0.33) | 4.6 | (0.31) | 4.4 | (0.32) | 18,660 | (116.4) | 814 | (58.7) | 49.8 | (0.13) | 41.1 | (2.02) | ||||||||
Race/ethnicity |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
| White | 5.1 | (0.30) | 4.6 | (0.29) | 4.5 | (0.33) | 4.8 | (0.41) | 19,693 | (125.9) | 940 | (80.2) | 52.6 | (0.18) | 47.5 | (2.48) | ||||||||
| Black | 8.0 | (0.76) | 6.5 | (0.70) | 5.6 | (0.67) | 4.2 | (0.62) | 5,100 | (107.6) | 213 | (31.6) | 13.6 | (0.24) | 10.8 | (1.56) | ||||||||
| Hispanic | 15.1 | (0.87) | 9.2 | (0.71) | 7.5 | (0.61) | 7.4 | (0.64) | 8,854 | (65.6) | 652 | (57.6) | 23.6 | (0.26) | 32.9 | (2.45) | ||||||||
| Asian | 4.1 | (1.03) | 3.4 | (0.85) | 2.6 | ! | (0.83) | 2.4 | (0.63) | 2,165 | (44.0) | ‡ | (†) | 5.8 | (0.11) | 2.6 | (0.69) | |||||||
| Pacific Islander | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | 132 | (24.7) | ‡ | (†) | 0.4 | (0.07) | 0.3 | ! | (0.14) | |||||||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | 12.4 | (3.43) | 14.4 | (3.75) | 5.6 | (1.54) | 11.5 | ! | (3.53) | 357 | (37.4) | ‡ | (†) | 1.0 | (0.10) | 2.1 | ! | (0.71) | ||||||
| Two or more races | 5.4 | (1.34) | 4.5 | (1.16) | 3.3 | ! | (1.06) | 6.5 | (1.61) | 1,168 | (47.6) | ‡ | (†) | 3.1 | (0.13) | 3.9 | (0.96) | |||||||
Race/ethnicity by sex |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Male | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| White | 5.9 | (0.42) | 5.0 | (0.40) | 5.3 | (0.45) | 5.4 | (0.54) | 9,972 | (91.7) | 538 | (53.5) | 53.0 | (0.38) | 46.2 | (3.11) | ||||||||
| Black | 9.5 | (1.11) | 6.4 | (1.04) | 6.6 | (1.07) | 5.6 | (1.00) | 2,471 | (66.2) | 138 | (24.4) | 13.1 | (0.33) | 11.8 | (2.02) | ||||||||
| Hispanic | 17.3 | (1.24) | 9.9 | (0.93) | 7.8 | (0.80) | 8.9 | (0.96) | 4,461 | (73.8) | 395 | (43.8) | 23.7 | (0.43) | 33.9 | (2.92) | ||||||||
| Asian | 3.6 | ! | (1.32) | 4.0 | (1.13) | 1.7 | ! | (0.77) | 3.2 | (0.96) | 1,073 | (26.7) | ‡ | (†) | 5.7 | (0.14) | 3.0 | (0.88) | ||||||
| Pacific Islander | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | 0.4 | (0.09) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | 10.6 | ! | (4.52) | 14.4 | ! | (5.86) | 7.5 | ! | (2.44) | 15.7 | ! | (5.98) | 167 | (25.9) | ‡ | (†) | 0.9 | (0.14) | 2.2 | ! | (0.96) | |||
| Two or more races | ‡ | (†) | 4.5 | ! | (1.80) | 5.5 | ! | (1.94) | 5.1 | ! | (1.71) | 597 | (40.7) | ‡ | (†) | 3.2 | (0.22) | 2.6 | ! | (0.90) | ||||
| Female | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| White | 4.2 | (0.35) | 4.1 | (0.37) | 3.8 | (0.39) | 4.1 | (0.41) | 9,720 | (55.7) | 402 | (39.6) | 52.1 | (0.29) | 49.3 | (3.29) | ||||||||
| Black | 6.7 | (0.85) | 6.5 | (0.98) | 4.6 | (0.83) | 2.9 | (0.66) | 2,629 | (52.0) | ‡ | (†) | 14.1 | (0.22) | 9.3 | (2.08) | ||||||||
| Hispanic | 12.8 | (0.97) | 8.4 | (0.97) | 7.1 | (0.83) | 5.9 | (0.77) | 4,393 | (26.8) | 257 | (33.9) | 23.5 | (0.13) | 31.6 | (3.32) | ||||||||
| Asian | 4.5 | ! | (1.40) | 2.8 | ! | (1.01) | 3.5 | ! | (1.29) | 1.5 | ! | (0.68) | 1,091 | (29.6) | ‡ | (†) | 5.8 | (0.15) | 2.1 | ! | (0.89) | |||
| Pacific Islander | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | 0.3 | (0.08) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||
| American Indian/Alaska Native | 14.2 | ! | (5.25) | 14.3 | ! | (4.53) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | 190 | (23.5) | ‡ | (†) | 1.0 | (0.13) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||
| Two or more races | 8.2 | (2.41) | 4.4 | ! | (1.80) | ‡ | (†) | 8.0 | ! | (2.75) | 571 | (38.1) | ‡ | (†) | 3.1 | (0.20) | 5.6 | ! | (1.93) | |||||
Age |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 16 | 2.0 | (0.33) | 4.6 | (0.60) | 5.7 | (0.62) | 5.6 | (0.77) | 4,122 | (52.1) | 230 | (31.8) | 11.0 | (0.15) | 11.6 | (1.49) | ||||||||
| 17 | 3.5 | (0.43) | 3.3 | (0.45) | 5.2 | (0.59) | 5.8 | (0.74) | 4,187 | (52.2) | 242 | (31.1) | 11.2 | (0.16) | 12.2 | (1.45) | ||||||||
| 18 | 6.8 | (0.72) | 7.0 | (0.77) | 6.1 | (0.81) | 5.4 | (0.64) | 4,185 | (53.9) | 224 | (26.3) | 11.2 | (0.15) | 11.3 | (1.24) | ||||||||
| 19 | 7.9 | (0.79) | 8.0 | (0.83) | 5.5 | (0.68) | 5.2 | (0.62) | 4,057 | (59.4) | 209 | (25.1) | 10.8 | (0.18) | 10.6 | (1.12) | ||||||||
| 20 to 24 | 9.3 | (0.37) | 6.0 | (0.32) | 4.9 | (0.31) | 5.1 | (0.38) | 20,917 | (201.2) | 1,073 | (78.6) | 55.8 | (0.31) | 54.2 | (2.29) | ||||||||
Recency of immigration4 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born outside the United States | 18.1 | (1.28) | 10.6 | (0.99) | 8.6 | (0.95) | 10.1 | (1.27) | 3,067 | (117.3) | 310 | (39.6) | 8.2 | (0.32) | 15.6 | (1.84) | ||||||||
| Hispanic | 27.6 | (2.03) | 17.4 | (1.89) | 14.2 | (1.79) | 15.8 | (2.23) | 1,532 | (87.5) | 242 | (36.7) | 4.1 | (0.24) | 12.2 | (1.71) | ||||||||
| Non-Hispanic | 6.4 | (1.20) | 4.7 | (1.05) | 3.8 | (1.10) | 4.4 | (0.93) | 1,535 | (90.1) | ‡ | (†) | 4.1 | (0.24) | 3.4 | (0.75) | ||||||||
| First generation | 6.7 | (0.56) | 4.5 | (0.58) | 5.1 | (0.55) | 4.4 | (0.50) | 7,385 | (171.9) | 325 | (37.9) | 19.7 | (0.46) | 16.4 | (1.87) | ||||||||
| Hispanic | 9.3 | (0.89) | 6.1 | (0.87) | 6.4 | (0.80) | 6.1 | (0.80) | 4,180 | (124.6) | 254 | (35.4) | 11.2 | (0.35) | 12.8 | (1.77) | ||||||||
| Non-Hispanic | 3.7 | (0.64) | 2.4 | (0.56) | 3.4 | (0.73) | 2.2 | (0.51) | 3,204 | (134.2) | ‡ | (†) | 8.6 | (0.35) | 3.6 | (0.82) | ||||||||
| Second generation or higher | 6.2 | (0.28) | 5.6 | (0.29) | 4.9 | (0.26) | 5.0 | (0.36) | 27,016 | (242.4) | 1,345 | (95.2) | 72.1 | (0.52) | 67.9 | (2.41) | ||||||||
| Hispanic | 11.5 | (1.29) | 8.4 | (1.15) | 5.7 | (0.84) | 5.0 | (0.84) | 3,141 | (120.7) | 157 | (27.0) | 8.4 | (0.33) | 7.9 | (1.29) | ||||||||
| Non-Hispanic | 5.8 | (0.28) | 5.2 | (0.29) | 4.7 | (0.29) | 5.0 | (0.38) | 23,875 | (215.6) | 1,188 | (89.1) | 63.7 | (0.42) | 60.0 | (2.52) | ||||||||
Disability5 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
| With a disability | 17.3 | (1.73) | 12.6 | (1.38) | 10.4 | (1.45) | 9.7 | (1.56) | 1,601 | (92.4) | 156 | (27.2) | 4.3 | (0.25) | 7.9 | (1.35) | ||||||||
| Without a disability | 7.0 | (0.27) | 5.6 | (0.26) | 5.0 | (0.24) | 5.1 | (0.30) | 35,866 | (181.0) | 1,824 | (107.0) | 95.7 | (0.25) | 92.1 | (1.35) | ||||||||
Region |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northeast | 5.8 | (0.58) | 4.3 | (0.57) | 4.9 | (0.65) | 5.5 | (0.68) | 6,345 | (144.5) | 352 | (42.9) | 16.9 | (0.38) | 17.8 | (1.89) | ||||||||
| Midwest | 6.6 | (0.54) | 5.0 | (0.55) | 5.0 | (0.58) | 5.8 | (0.76) | 7,925 | (165.1) | 457 | (61.1) | 21.2 | (0.42) | 23.1 | (2.53) | ||||||||
| South | 7.9 | (0.49) | 7.0 | (0.43) | 5.4 | (0.39) | 4.9 | (0.41) | 14,168 | (197.7) | 688 | (58.2) | 37.8 | (0.49) | 34.8 | (2.33) | ||||||||
| West | 8.8 | (0.54) | 5.9 | (0.49) | 5.4 | (0.49) | 5.3 | (0.48) | 9,030 | (160.2) | 483 | (42.5) | 24.1 | (0.44) | 24.4 | (2.06) | ||||||||
| †Not applicable. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| !Interpret data with caution. The coefficient of variation (CV) for this estimate is between 30 and 50 percent. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ‡Reporting standards not met. Either there are too few cases for a reliable estimate or the coefficient of variation (CV) is 50 percent or greater. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 The status dropout rate is the percentage of 16- to 24-year-olds who are not enrolled in high school and who lack a high school credential. High school credentials include high school diplomas and alternative credentials, such as a GED certificate. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2 Includes all 16- to 24-year-olds. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3 Status dropouts are 16- to 24-year-olds who are not enrolled in high school and who lack a high school credential. High school credentials include high school diplomas and alternative credentials, such as a GED certificate. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4 United States refers to the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern Marianas. Children born abroad to U.S.-citizen parents are counted as born in the United States. Individuals defined as "first generation" were born in the United States, but one or both of their parents were born outside the United States. Individuals defined as "second generation or higher" were born in the United States, as were both of their parents. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 5 Individuals identified as having a disability reported difficulty in at least one of the following: hearing, seeing even when wearing glasses, walking or climbing stairs, dressing or bathing, doing errands alone, concentrating, remembering, or making decisions. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NOTE: Data are based on sample surveys of the civilian noninstitutionalized population, which excludes persons in the military and persons living in institutions (e.g., prisons or nursing facilities). Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding and the suppression of cells that do not meet National Center for Education Statistics reporting standards. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, Current Population Survey (CPS), October, 2010 through 2020. (This table was prepared September 2021.) |
