US women outpace men in higher tuition – census

US women have surged past their male counterparts in the key socio-economic indicator of education, with census data showing for the first time that more working women than men have higher education degrees.

Data released by the once-per- decade US census, last conducted in 2010, shows 37 per cent of the female working population age 25 and older have bachelor’s degrees or higher, compared with 35 pe cent of men.

Throughout the entire adult population over age 25, men still hold the educational edge, with 30.3 per cent having at least a bachelor’s degree compared with 29.6 per cent for women.

But the Census Bureau data shows the female trend is expected to continue: Among all young adults aged 25 to 29, 36 per cent of women had bachelor degrees or higher, compared with 28 per cent for men.

Women began overtaking men in university enrolment several years ago, and by the year 2000 they were attaining more advanced degrees – Master’s degrees and PhDs lumped together – than men.

The overall trend could eventually translate to a dramatic shift in the broader US workforce.

According to the latest census data, out of a total 200 million Americans 25 and older, 174 million have attained at least a high school diploma, or about 87 per cent, up from 84 per cent in 2000. Thirty per cent of US adults 25 and older, some 60 million people, had at least a bachelor’s degree in 2010, compared with 26 per cent in 2000.

Broken down by ethnic groups, the data shows that some 52 per cent of Asians in the US had a Bachelor’s degree or higher, compared with 33 per cent for non-Hispanic whites, 20 per cent for African-Americans and 14 per cent for Hispanics.