Full Citation
Title: Inequality in Postsecondary Attainment: An Histortical Perspective
Citation Type: Miscellaneous
Publication Year: 2009
ISBN:
ISSN:
DOI:
NSFID:
PMCID:
PMID:
Abstract: Male education levels have stagnated for decades, while female education levels have risensteadily. Women now outnumber men in college, with especially large differences among Blacksand Hispanics. We trace the development of racial and gender differences in educationalattainment from high school through college for cohorts born between 1921 and 1988. UsingCensus measures, high school completion rates doubled and college entry and collegecompletion more than quadrupled over this 67-year period. Women as a group increased theiradvantage in high school completion and surpassed men in their college entry and completion.Black women have historically entered and completed college at higher rates than Black males.For the period during which we can measure Hispanic origin, the same is true among Hispanics.The same pattern now holds among Whites, starting with the cohorts born in the 1960s. In theaggregate, two thirds of the change in college entry is explained by changes in high schoolcompletion for those born between 1921 and 1988 but only one third for the cohorts bornbetween 1961 and 1988. Changes in high school completion explain relatively more of thechanges in college entry among Blacks: 90 percent for the cohorts of 1921 to 1988 and almost 50percent for the cohorts of 1961 to 1988 period. High school completion explains slightly morethan half of changes in college entry among Hispanics born from 1961 to 1988. Because menlagged behind women in high school completion, high school completion explains over 74percent of mens increasing college entry for the 1921 to 1988 cohorts (62 percent for women)and roughly one third for the 1961 to 1988 birth cohorts (28 percent for women).
User Submitted?: No
Authors: Bailey, Martha J.; Dynarski, Susan
Publisher: Brookings Institute
Data Collections: IPUMS USA
Topics: Education, Other, Race and Ethnicity
Countries: