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Digest of Education Statistics
2021 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest


Table 501.70. Employment to population ratios of females 16 to 64 years old, by age group and highest level of educational attainment: Selected years, 1975 through 2021
[Standard errors appear in parentheses]
Age group and highest level of educational attainment 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
16 to 19 years old, all education
    levels1
---   (†) ---   (†) ---   (†) 56.6   (2.72) 52.2   (2.93) 55.1   (2.98) 51.0   (1.88) 42.3   (1.88) 46.9   (1.88) 48.9   (2.01) 54.6   (2.24) 53.1   (2.21) 58.9   (1.96) 52.5   (2.39) 53.0   (2.18)
Less than high school completion ---   (†) ---   (†) ---   (†) 36.0   (4.13) 36.5   (4.23) 38.9   (4.42) 30.3   (2.72) 26.8   (2.75) 33.3   (2.82) 34.4   (2.84) 36.0   (3.24) 40.4   (4.12) 41.4   (3.49) 32.7   (3.32) 38.1   (4.04)
High school completion2 ---   (†) ---   (†) ---   (†) 70.5   (3.38) 64.1   (4.22) 65.2   (4.22) 67.0   (2.60) 51.2   (2.99) 52.8   (2.83) 56.5   (2.90) 65.6   (3.00) 57.5   (2.85) 68.4   (2.96) 62.8   (3.50) 56.0   (3.02)
At least some college ---   (†) ---   (†) ---   (†) 73.1   (11.7) 68.3   (8.37) 79.1   (7.56) 63.6   (6.23) 54.4   (5.29) 67.7   (5.08) 64.5   (5.00) 65.0   (5.75) 70.5   (5.43) 73.4   (4.88) 67.6   (6.03) 73.5   (4.87)

20 to 24 years old, all education
    levels1
---   (†) ---   (†) ---   (†) 68.2   (1.29) 66.3   (1.34) 71.5   (1.35) 67.0   (1.01) 62.4   (1.01) 67.7   (0.88) 69.2   (0.87) 73.2   (0.89) 73.6   (0.98) 74.9   (0.89) 72.5   (1.11) 70.0   (1.09)
Less than high school completion ---   (†) ---   (†) ---   (†) 36.7   (3.08) 33.6   (3.18) 46.2   (3.57) 38.5   (2.20) 33.3   (2.50) 42.0   (3.18) 38.3   (2.77) 39.5   (3.09) 38.5   (3.52) 48.9   (3.97) 44.6   (4.17) 45.8   (3.56)
High school completion2 ---   (†) ---   (†) ---   (†) 68.8   (1.84) 62.2   (2.19) 70.0   (2.15) 65.0   (1.47) 55.6   (1.43) 61.6   (1.41) 64.4   (1.56) 66.9   (1.54) 67.1   (1.50) 67.5   (1.66) 64.1   (1.95) 63.3   (1.69)
Some college, no bachelor's
    degree3
---   (†) ---   (†) ---   (†) 80.9   (2.39) 80.3   (2.12) 81.4   (2.23) 76.6   (1.72) 71.2   (1.65) 72.9   (1.54) 73.0   (1.49) 77.6   (1.38) 80.4   (1.55) 78.2   (1.54) 75.0   (1.86) 72.6   (1.90)
Bachelor's or higher degree ---   (†) ---   (†) ---   (†) 92.0 4 (2.12) 90.8   (2.19) 86.9   (2.61) 88.4   (1.53) 86.7   (1.67) 87.6   (1.42) 87.5   (1.54) 89.8   (1.30) 88.9   (1.57) 90.9   (1.40) 89.3   (1.48) 86.4   (1.48)

25 to 64 years old, all education
    levels
48.5   (0.46) 56.5   (0.44) 60.8   (0.43) 66.0   (0.42) 68.3   (0.40) 71.2   (0.39) 68.4   (0.23) 66.9   (0.23) 67.1   (0.24) 67.8   (0.24) 68.8   (0.24) 69.0   (0.24) 69.8   (0.25) 69.3   (0.27) 67.8   (0.27)
Less than high school completion 37.7   (0.80) 39.8   (0.86) 39.1   (0.97) 41.8   (1.06) 43.2   (1.15) 45.8   (1.24) 43.4   (0.72) 41.6   (0.81) 40.5   (0.81) 43.2   (0.84) 43.1   (0.90) 43.2   (0.84) 42.1   (0.83) 42.1   (1.03) 39.1   (0.97)
High school completion2 50.1   (0.70) 58.2   (0.65) 60.8   (0.65) 65.6   (0.64) 65.7   (0.69) 68.6   (0.70) 64.2   (0.44) 61.9   (0.44) 59.1   (0.48) 59.5   (0.54) 60.2   (0.50) 60.4   (0.50) 61.5   (0.52) 60.1   (0.57) 57.4   (0.51)
Some college, no bachelor's
    degree3
53.8   (1.30) 63.7   (1.07) 69.0   (0.98) 73.2   (0.88) 73.8   (0.71) 76.0   (0.70) 72.8   (0.42) 69.4   (0.45) 69.3   (0.45) 69.3   (0.43) 71.0   (0.42) 70.1   (0.46) 70.9   (0.43) 69.7   (0.47) 68.1   (0.47)
Bachelor's or higher degree 65.6 4 (1.29) 71.8 4 (1.01) 76.7 4 (0.88) 79.8 4 (0.78) 80.8   (0.71) 80.8   (0.66) 78.1   (0.40) 76.9   (0.36) 78.2   (0.35) 78.4   (0.33) 78.8   (0.35) 79.3   (0.38) 79.9   (0.40) 79.2   (0.37) 78.3   (0.39)

25 to 34 years old, all education
    levels
49.3   (0.83) 61.6   (0.73) 65.9   (0.72) 69.6   (0.70) 70.2   (0.71) 74.1   (0.74) 69.0   (0.48) 68.0   (0.44) 69.0   (0.51) 70.3   (0.51) 72.6   (0.50) 72.8   (0.49) 73.4   (0.47) 73.1   (0.48) 71.3   (0.49)
Less than high school completion 33.7   (1.74) 42.3   (1.91) 38.7   (2.05) 42.5   (2.12) 43.5   (2.25) 47.6   (2.56) 42.7   (1.44) 40.2   (1.35) 36.5   (1.73) 41.2   (1.73) 41.5   (1.81) 40.5   (2.13) 39.1   (1.96) 41.1   (2.29) 38.3   (2.36)
High school completion2 48.1   (1.22) 59.4   (1.12) 63.9   (1.11) 67.5   (1.11) 67.2   (1.27) 70.7   (1.43) 62.5   (0.99) 61.4   (1.14) 58.6   (1.08) 60.4   (1.11) 61.5   (1.13) 61.9   (1.15) 63.0   (1.05) 60.3   (1.10) 56.9   (1.19)
Some college, no bachelor's
    degree3
53.6   (2.06) 66.3   (1.58) 71.0   (1.46) 74.5   (1.40) 73.0   (1.26) 76.3   (1.31) 73.0   (0.81) 67.7   (0.80) 70.6   (0.83) 70.9   (0.90) 74.9   (0.78) 73.7   (0.90) 74.2   (0.81) 73.9   (0.85) 70.2   (0.87)
Bachelor's or higher degree 66.3 4 (1.88) 75.5 4 (1.42) 80.6 4 (1.26) 83.2 4 (1.18) 83.4   (1.16) 84.7   (1.11) 80.1   (0.72) 79.9   (0.63) 80.9   (0.67) 81.1   (0.70) 82.5   (0.63) 82.7   (0.62) 83.4   (0.62) 82.7   (0.69) 83.0   (0.62)

35 to 44 years old, all education
    levels
51.9   (0.95) 62.8   (0.87) 67.7   (0.80) 73.3   (0.72) 73.8   (0.68) 75.1   (0.67) 72.8   (0.38) 69.9   (0.42) 71.3   (0.42) 71.5   (0.43) 72.1   (0.43) 72.8   (0.44) 73.4   (0.44) 72.7   (0.51) 70.5   (0.51)
Less than high school completion 42.8   (1.76) 48.2   (1.90) 46.4   (2.13) 51.0   (2.35) 49.7   (2.33) 52.5   (2.35) 51.5   (1.33) 44.8   (1.54) 45.5   (1.44) 49.1   (1.56) 48.6   (1.71) 46.9   (1.53) 48.4   (1.65) 46.8   (1.92) 42.3   (1.61)
High school completion2 53.9   (1.38) 64.7   (1.28) 67.8   (1.22) 72.7   (1.13) 71.7   (1.19) 74.7   (1.18) 71.6   (0.74) 66.3   (0.87) 62.8   (0.99) 61.8   (1.00) 63.7   (1.00) 63.7   (1.03) 64.0   (1.03) 64.8   (1.19) 61.6   (1.29)
Some college, no bachelor's
    degree3
55.1   (2.67) 67.8   (2.14) 73.6   (1.73) 77.9   (1.44) 78.5   (1.16) 79.4   (1.16) 76.1   (0.67) 72.2   (0.74) 74.5   (0.70) 73.9   (0.83) 74.2   (0.82) 74.8   (0.82) 75.0   (0.87) 72.1   (0.95) 71.0   (0.95)
Bachelor's or higher degree 63.2 4 (2.73) 73.0 4 (1.97) 78.5 4 (1.53) 81.2 4 (1.30) 81.5   (1.19) 80.2   (1.20) 78.1   (0.66) 78.3   (0.59) 81.0   (0.57) 80.4   (0.55) 80.1   (0.58) 81.4   (0.58) 82.1   (0.61) 81.1   (0.65) 79.2   (0.66)

45 to 54 years old, all education
    levels
51.5   (0.93) 57.1   (0.94) 62.1   (0.98) 68.6   (0.92) 72.9   (0.80) 76.0   (0.73) 73.2   (0.40) 71.3   (0.44) 70.8   (0.46) 71.6   (0.48) 72.2   (0.52) 72.6   (0.46) 73.8   (0.43) 73.5   (0.49) 72.0   (0.53)
Less than high school completion 41.5   (1.55) 43.9   (1.71) 44.3   (2.06) 47.6   (2.22) 50.6   (2.43) 52.3   (2.57) 47.8   (1.40) 45.2   (1.61) 47.3   (1.50) 47.2   (1.49) 47.7   (1.67) 48.7   (1.73) 48.7   (1.68) 45.9   (1.81) 43.1   (1.77)
High school completion2 53.8   (1.37) 60.2   (1.37) 64.2   (1.41) 69.9   (1.35) 71.1   (1.36) 72.9   (1.33) 69.5   (0.83) 67.1   (0.72) 64.5   (0.93) 64.7   (0.97) 65.6   (0.96) 65.4   (0.89) 68.2   (1.00) 66.4   (1.19) 64.3   (1.05)
Some college, no bachelor's
    degree3
58.1   (2.78) 64.7   (2.56) 69.7   (2.45) 75.2   (2.08) 76.9   (1.46) 80.6   (1.28) 76.9   (0.72) 75.5   (0.74) 72.8   (0.80) 73.0   (0.95) 74.8   (0.82) 74.0   (0.95) 74.3   (0.86) 74.6   (0.93) 73.1   (0.94)
Bachelor's or higher degree 72.2 4 (2.87) 72.3 4 (2.55) 77.3 4 (2.24) 81.8 4 (1.76) 83.8   (1.36) 84.5   (1.17) 82.8   (0.72) 79.7   (0.69) 80.8   (0.63) 82.3   (0.66) 81.0   (0.71) 82.5   (0.67) 82.6   (0.69) 82.2   (0.66) 80.5   (0.72)

55 to 64 years old, all education
    levels
39.7   (0.99) 40.5   (0.94) 41.1   (0.99) 44.0   (1.05) 47.5   (1.08) 51.9   (1.06) 54.8   (0.61) 57.1   (0.53) 57.0   (0.49) 57.9   (0.52) 58.4   (0.52) 57.9   (0.52) 58.7   (0.57) 58.1   (0.49) 57.4   (0.53)
Less than high school completion 33.5   (1.39) 29.4   (1.41) 31.2   (1.60) 30.5   (1.80) 30.3   (2.07) 30.9   (2.26) 30.5   (1.33) 35.1   (1.54) 32.1   (1.42) 34.9   (1.53) 34.8   (1.37) 36.4   (1.58) 32.8   (1.72) 35.3   (1.73) 33.5   (1.68)
High school completion2 42.6   (1.65) 45.8   (1.48) 42.8   (1.48) 45.7   (1.60) 47.5   (1.66) 51.3   (1.69) 50.5   (0.95) 52.2   (0.92) 51.8   (0.99) 52.6   (1.06) 52.2   (0.93) 52.7   (1.05) 53.5   (0.95) 52.0   (1.04) 49.9   (0.97)
Some college, no bachelor's
    degree3
45.9   (3.37) 48.2   (2.87) 51.1   (2.95) 54.1   (2.81) 57.0   (2.32) 58.8   (2.17) 60.9   (1.06) 59.9   (1.08) 59.4   (0.92) 60.0   (0.94) 60.6   (0.93) 58.8   (1.01) 61.1   (0.93) 59.4   (0.96) 59.0   (1.02)
Bachelor's or higher degree 57.8 4 (3.72) 54.0 4 (3.27) 55.1 4 (3.18) 58.6 4 (2.98) 61.9   (2.81) 65.1   (2.28) 67.5   (1.22) 67.5   (0.98) 68.1   (0.86) 68.1   (0.90) 69.5   (0.94) 68.5   (0.98) 69.1   (1.00) 68.2   (0.98) 68.5   (0.85)
---Not available.
†Not applicable.
1 Data for 16- to 19-year-olds and 20- to 24-year-olds exclude persons enrolled in school.
2 Data for years prior to 1992 are for persons with 4 or more years of high school. Data for later years are for high school completers--i.e., those persons who graduated from high school with a diploma as well as those who completed high school through equivalency programs, such as a GED program.
3 Includes persons with no college degree as well as those with an associate's degree.
4 Data are for persons with 4 or more years of college, even if they did not complete a degree.
NOTE: Data are based on sample surveys of the noninstitutionalized population, which excludes persons living in institutions (e.g., prisons or nursing facilities); this table includes only data on the civilian population (excludes all military personnel). For each age group, the employment to population ratio of females is the number of females in that age group who are employed as a percentage of the female civilian population in that age group. Caution should be used when comparing 2020 and 2021 estimates to those of prior years due to the impact that the coronavirus pandemic had on interviewing and response rates. For additional information about the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the Current Population Survey data collection, please see https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cps/techdocs/cpsmar21.pdf.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, Current Population Survey (CPS), Annual Social and Economic Supplement, selected years, 1975 through 2021. (This table was prepared November 2021.)

2021 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest