Male and Female High School Students’ 

Expectations for Working In a 

Health-Related Field

DATA POINT

June 2020

NCES 2020-082

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

A Publication of the National Center for Education Statistics at IES

This Data Point uses data from the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09), a nationally representative study 

of more than 23,000 ninth-graders in 2009. Follow-up surveys were administered to the cohort in 2012, 2013, and 2016. 

This Data Point uses data from the initial survey in 2009 and first follow-up in 2012.

Students who were freshmen in high school in 2009 were asked about their occupational expectations at age 30. They 

were asked the same question again in the spring of 2012, when most would have been in their junior year. Students 

wrote in an occupation, which was coded into an occupational category. This Data Point examines expectations for a 

career in a healthcare field. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects greater job growth in the healthcare sector than in 

all other employment sectors between 2016 and 2026.1

 Healthcare occupations account for 16 of the 30 projected fastest 

growing occupations from 2016 to 2026.

How do high school students’ 

expectations for having a job in 

healthcare change between their 

freshman year and two-and-ahalf years later?

• Nearly a third of students

(31 percent) expected to have a

job in a healthcare field at age 30

either when they were freshmen

in high school in 2009 or in 2012

(FIGURE 1).

• Twelve percent of students who

were freshmen in high school in

2009 expected to have a career

in a healthcare occupation at the

age of 30 in both 2009 and 2012.

• Ten percent of students who

were freshmen in high school

in 2009 did not expect to have

a career in a healthcare field at

age 30 in 2009, but did in 2012.

• Approximately 69 percent of

students who were freshmen

in high school in 2009 did

not expect to have a career in

healthcare at age 30, either in

2009 or 2012.

To learn more about the data collection used in this report, visit https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/hsls09/hsls09_data.asp.

For questions about content or to view this report online, go to https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2020082.

In both 2009 and 2012, 

did not expect to have a 

career in healthcare 

at age 30 (69)

In both 2009 and 2012, expected to

have a career in healthcare at age 30 (12)

In 2009, did not expect to have a career 

in healthcare at age 30, but did in 2012 (10)

In 2009, expected to have a career in 

healthcare at age 30, but did not in 2012 (9)

FIGURE 1. Percentage distribution of 2009 ninth-graders’ expectations 

for a career in a healthcare field at age 30 when asked in 2009 and 2012

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center 

for Education Statistics. High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) Second

Follow-up Restricted-Use Data File.
Does the pattern of expectations 

for a career in healthcare differ 

by student sex?

Healthcare as a field employs more 

females than males. It is estimated 

that 80 percent of all healthcare 

workers are female.2

• Among 2009 ninth grade

students, three times as many

females as males in 2009

expected to have a career in a

healthcare field at age 30

(31 percent compared to

9 percent) (FIGURE 2).

• In 2012 the pattern was the

same, with 34 percent of

females expecting a career

in a healthcare field at age 30

compared to 10 percent of

males.

• Among 2009 ninth-graders, a

higher percentage of females

than males expected to have a

career in a healthcare field at

age 30 in both 2009 and 2012

(20 percent compared to

4 percent).

Endnotes

1

 Lacey, T.A., Mitra, T., Dubina, K.S., and 

Gensler, A.B. (2017). Projections Overview 

and Highlights, 2016–26. Monthly Labor 

Review. U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

Retrieved May 14, 2020 from 

https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2017/

article/projections-overview-andhighlights-2016-26.htm

2

 Carnevale, A.P., Smith, N., Gulish, A., 

and Beach, B.H. (2012). Healthcare. 

Washington, DC: Georgetown University 

Center on Education and the Workforce.

Male and Female High School Students’ Expectations for Working In a Health-Related Field

This National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Data Point presents information on education topics of current interest. It was authored by Laura 

Holian of AnLar, LLC. All estimates shown are based on samples and are subject to sampling variability. All differences are statistically significant at the .05 

level using a two-tailed Student’s t test without adjusting for multiple comparisons. In the design, conduct, and data processing of NCES surveys, efforts are 

made to minimize the effects of nonsampling errors, such as item nonresponse, measurement error, data processing error, or other systematic error.

FIGURE 2. Percentage of 2009 ninth grade students who expected to have a career in a healthcare field at age 30, 

when asked in 2009 and 2012, by sex

NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics. High School Longitudinal 

Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) Second Follow-up Restricted-Use Data File.

0

20

40

60

80

100

2009

9

31

Male Female

2012

10

34

Both 2009 and2012

4

20

Percent

Healthcare occupation expectation at age 30