Question:
What is the percentage of degrees conferred by sex and race?

Response:
Between 1997–98 and 2007–08, the percentage of degrees earned by females fluctuated between 60 and 62 percent for associate's degrees and between 56 and 58 percent for bachelor's degrees, while the percentage of master's degrees earned by females increased from 57 to 61 percent. The percentage of first-professional degrees and doctoral degrees earned by females also increased during this period. In 1997–98, females earned 43 percent of first-professional degrees and 42 percent of doctoral degrees; in 2007–08, the respective percentages were 50 and 51 percent.

The number of degrees earned increased for all racial/ethnic groups for each type of degree, but at varying rates. Looking at trends in associate's degrees between 1997–98 and 2007–08, the number earned by Hispanics almost doubled (from 45,900 to 91,300 degrees) and the number earned by Black students increased by 73 percent (from 55,300 to 95,700 degrees), while the number earned by White students increased by 21 percent (from 413,600 to 501,100 degrees). In 2007–08, Blacks earned 13 percent and Hispanics earned 12 percent of all associate's degrees awarded, up from the 10 and 8 percent that they earned, respectively, in 1997–98. Between 1997–98 and 2007–08, the number of bachelor's degrees awarded to White students increased by 25 percent (from 0.9 to 1.1 million degrees), while the number awarded to Hispanic students increased by 86 percent (from 66,000 to 123,000 degrees) and the number awarded to Black students increased by 55 percent (from 98,300 to 152,500 degrees). In 2007–08, Blacks earned 10 percent and Hispanics earned 8 percent of all bachelor's degrees awarded, up from 10 years earlier when they earned 8 and 6 percent, respectively.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2010). Condition of Education 2010, Indicator 23 (NCES 2010-028).

Number of degrees conferred, percentage distribution, and percentage of degrees conferred to females, by type of degree and racial/ethnic group: Academic years 1997-98 and 2007-08
Degreee and race/ethnicity	Number		Percentage distribution		Percent conferred to females
	1997–98	2007–08	1997–98	2007–08	1997–98	2007–08
Associate's	558,555	750,164	100.0	100.0	61.0	62.3
White	413,561	501,079	74.0	66.8	61.0	61.3
Black	55,314	95,702	9.9	12.8	66.2	68.6
Hispanic	45,876	91,274	8.2	12.2	58.3	63.0
Asian/Pacific Islander	25,196	38,843	4.5	5.2	56.5	59.0
American Indian/Alaska Native	6,246	8,849	1.1	1.2	63.9	66.1
Nonresident alien	12,362	14,417	2.2	1.9	56.3	60.8
Bachelor's	1,184,406	1,563,069	100.0	100.0	56.1	57.3
White	901,344	1,222,675	76.1	71.8	55.7	56.2
Black	98,251	152,457	8.3	9.8	64.9	65.7
Hispanic	66,005	123,048	5.6	7.9	58.1	61.1
Asian/Pacific Islander	71,678	109,058	6.1	7.0	53.3	54.6
American Indian/Alaska Native	7,903	11,509	0.7	0.7	60.1	60.7
Nonresident alien	39,225	44,322	3.3	2.8	44.9	51.1
Master's	430,164	625,023	100.0	100.0	57.1	60.6
White	308,196	409,312	71.6	65.5	59.2	62.1
Black	30,155	65,062	7.0	10.4	68.0	71.8
Hispanic	16,248	36,801	3.8	5.9	59.9	64.5
Asian/Pacific Islander	21,133	37,408	4.9	6.0	51.4	53.9
American Indian/Alaska Native	2,053	3,758	0.5	0.6	61.9	65.9
Nonresident alien	52,379	72,682	12.2	11.6	39.7	42.9
First-professional1	78,598	91,309	100.0	100.0	42.9	49.7
White	59,443	65,383	75.6	71.6	40.8	47.1
Black	5,499	6,400	7.0	7.0	58.0	62.7
Hispanic	3,552	4,840	4.5	5.3	44.5	52.5
Asian/Pacific Islander	7,757	11,846	9.9	13.0	48.2	56.7
American Indian/Alaska Native	561	675	0.7	0.7	48.1	49.2
Nonresident alien	1,786	2,165	2.3	2.4	35.7	47.8
Doctoral2	46,010	63,712	100.0	100.0	42.0	51.0
White	28,803	36,390	62.6	57.1	46.5	55.6
Black	2,067	3,906	4.5	6.1	60.1	66.4
Hispanic	1,275	2,279	2.8	3.6	48.9	57.1
Asian/Pacific Islander	2,339	3,618	5.1	5.7	40.5	55.0
American Indian/Alaska Native	186	272	0.4	0.4	55.4	57.7
Nonresident alien	11,340	17,247	24.6	27.1	26.7	36.1

¹ An award that requires completion of a degree program that meets all of the following criteria: (1) completion of the academic requirements to begin practice in the profession, (2) at least 2 years of college work before entering the degree program, and (3) a total of at least 6 academic years of college work to complete the degree program, including previously required college work plus the work required in the professional program itself. Includes degrees such as M.D., D.D.S., and law degrees.

² Includes Ph.D., Ed.D., and comparable degrees at the doctoral level.

NOTE: Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Nonresident aliens are shown separately since information about their race/ethnicity is not available. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2010). Condition of Education 2010, Table A-23-2,(NCES 2010-028).

Related Tables and Figures:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2010, Digest of Education Statistics 2009, Table 282. Associate's degrees conferred by degree-granting institutions, by race/ethnicity and sex of student: Selected years, 1976-77 through 2007-08
  
• 2010, Digest of Education Statistics 2009, Table 285. Bachelor's degrees conferred by degree-granting institutions, by race/ethnicity and sex of student: Selected years, 1976-77 through 2007-08
  
• 2010, Digest of Education Statistics 2009, Table 288. Master's degrees conferred by degree-granting institutions, by race/ethnicity and sex of student: Selected years, 1976-77 through 2007-08
  
• 2010, Digest of Education Statistics 2009, Table 291. Doctor's degrees conferred by degree-granting institutions, by race/ethnicity and sex of student: Selected years, 1976-77 through 2007-08
  
• 2010, Digest of Education Statistics 2009, Table 294. First-professional degrees conferred by degree-granting institutions, by race/ethnicity and sex of student: Selected years, 1976-77 through 2007-08
  

Other Resources:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2010, Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS): BPS studies follow students who first begin their postsecondary education.
  
• 2010, The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS): IPEDS is a system of surveys designed to collect data from all primary providers of postsecondary education.
  
• 2009, Indicator reports on specialized topics from the Annual Reports Program
  
• 2005, Gender Differences in Participation and Completion of Undergraduate Education and How They Have Changed Over Time