Trends in High School Dropout and Completion Rates in the United States: 1972–2008

NCES 2011-012 December 2010

Table 2. Event dropout rates of 15- through 24-year-olds who dropped out of grades 10–12, and number of dropouts and population of 15- through 24-year-olds who were enrolled: October 1972 through October 2008

Year2	Event dropout rate (percent)	Number of event dropouts (thousands)	Population enrolled1 (thousands)
1972	6.1	647	10,550
1973	6.3	674	10,736
1974	6.7	735	10,894
1975	5.8	631	10,875
1976	5.9	641	10,844
1977	6.5	729	11,178
1978	6.7	739	11,012
1979	6.7	745	11,044
1980	6.1	655	10,758
1981	5.9	636	10,746
1982	5.5	573	10,435
1983	5.2	531	10,146
1984	5.1	504	9,828
1985	5.2	502	9,597
1986	4.7	462	9,828
1987	4.1	405	9,819
1988	4.8	460	9,613
1989	4.5	403	9,001
1990	4.0	347	8,675
1991	4.0	348	8,700
1992	4.4	383	8,716
1993	4.5	381	8,549
1994	5.3	497	9,374
1995	5.7	544	9,509
1996	5.0	485	9,612
1997	4.6	454	9,984
1998	4.8	479	10,079
1999	5.0	519	10,464
2000	4.8	488	10,126
2001	5.0	505	10,187
2002	3.6	367	10,254
2003	4.0	429	10,698
2004	4.7	486	10,385
2005	3.8	414	10,870
2006	3.8	407	10,849
2007	3.5	383	10,967
2008	3.5	390	11,058
1 This is an estimate of the population of 15- through 24-year-olds enrolled during the previous year in high school based on the number of students still enrolled in the current year and the number of students who either graduated or dropped out the previous year. 2 Estimates beginning in 1987 reflect new editing procedures for cases with missing data on school enrollment items. Estimates beginning in 1992 reflect new wording of the educational attainment item. Estimates beginning in 1994 reflect changes due to newly instituted computer-assisted interviewing. For details about changes in the Current Population Survey (CPS) over time, please see Kaufman, P., Alt, M.N., and Chapman, C. (2004). Dropout Rates in the United States: 2001 (NCES 2005-046). National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC. NOTE: The event dropout rate indicates the percentage of youth ages 15 through 24 who dropped out of grades 10–12 between one October and the next (e.g., October 2007 to October 2008). Dropping out is defined as leaving school without a high school diploma or equivalent credential, such as a General Educational Development (GED) certificate. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, Current Population Survey (CPS), October 1972–2008.