Enrollment in 2-year and 4-year colleges rose 37 percent from 15.3 million in fall 2000 to 21.0 million in fall 2010, and then decreased 6 percent to 19.8 million in fall 2016. In fall 2016, 8.6 million students were males and 11.2 million were females.
| Sex, attendance status, and control of institution | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 | 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 13,819 | 15,312 | 21,019 | 19,841 |
| Males | 6,284 | 6,722 | 9,046 | 8,636 |
| Full-time | 3,808 | 4,111 | 5,838 | 5,473 |
| Part-time | 2,476 | 2,611 | 3,207 | 3,163 |
| Females | 7,535 | 8,591 | 11,974 | 11,205 |
| Full-time | 4,013 | 4,899 | 7,249 | 6,653 |
| Part-time | 3,521 | 3,692 | 4,725 | 4,552 |
| Public | 10,845 | 11,753 | 15,142 | 14,583 |
| Males | 4,875 | 5,132 | 6,679 | 6,513 |
| Females | 5,970 | 6,620 | 8,463 | 8,070 |
| Private | 2,974 | 3,560 | 5,877 | 5,258 |
| Males | 1,409 | 1,589 | 2,367 | 2,122 |
| Females | 1,565 | 1,970 | 3,510 | 3,136 |