NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDUCATION STATISTICS

U.S. Department of Education

Office of Educational Research and Improvement NCES 95-768

Findings from

THE CONDITION OF EDUCATION 1995

THE EDUCATIONAL

PROGRESS OF

WOMEN

NO.

5
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Richard W. Riley

Secretary

OFFICE OF EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH AND IMPROVEMENT

Sharon P. Robinson

Assistant Secretary

NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDUCATION STATISTICS

Jeanne E. Griffith

Acting Commissioner

NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDUCATION STATISTICS

The purpose of the Center is to collect and report “. . . statistics and

information showing the condition and progress of education in

the United States and other nations in order to promote and accelerate the improvement of American education.”—Section 402(b) of

the National Education Statistics Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 9001).

November 1995

The text in this booklet was written by Thomas M. Smith of the Data

Development Division of NCES and appears in The Condition of

Education, 1995. Steven G. Klein of MPR Associates, Inc. adapted the

content to this format, Andrea Livingston edited the text, and Leslie

Retallick, Lynn Sally, and Doug Muise designed the graphics and layout.
Over the past two decades, women have made substantial educational progress. The large gaps between the education levels

of women and men that were evident in the early 1970s have

essentially disappeared for the younger generation. Although

they still lag behind males in mathematics and science achievement, high school females on average outperform males in reading and writing, and take more credits in academic subjects. In

addition, females are more likely than males to attend college

after high school, and are as likely to graduate with a postsecondary degree.

It remains to be seen, however, how these gains in educational

attainment will be rewarded in the marketplace. In 1993, the

average earnings of female high school graduates aged 25–34

were more than one-third lower than those of male graduates of

the same age. Similarly, female college graduates earn, on average, salaries that are 80 percent of what their male counterparts

receive. Furthermore, these large gender differences in earnings

persist after taking educational attainment and prose, document, and quantitative literacy skills into account.1

Differences in academic achievement, progression rates, types of

courses taken, level of effort, and field of study may all affect the

labor market opportunities of women relative to men. This fifth

publication in the series of Findings from The Condition of

Education summarizes educational differences between females

and males that research has shown to be related to labor market

outcomes.

1

THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS

OF WOMEN
• Females are generally younger than males in

first grade and are less likely to fall behind or

require special educational services once

enrolled.

In 1993, a smaller percentage of females than males in first grade

were age 7 or older (17 and 22 percent, respectively).2 Females

are also less likely than males to repeat a grade. In 1992, 9 percent of 16- to 24-year-old females had been retained in one or

more grades, compared to 14 percent of their male counterparts.3

Percentage of first-grade students 

who are at least 7 years old: 1972–1993

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census,

October Current Population Surveys.

Females are also far less likely than males to be enrolled in special education programs: in 1990, less than one-third of students

in special education were female.4

2

ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION

PROGRESS IN SCHOOL

‘72

Percent

‘75 ‘78 ‘81 ‘84 ‘87 ‘90 ‘93

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Male

Female

40
• Differences in the academic performance

of female and male students appear as

early as age 9, and persist through age 17.

Although overall proficiency scores have increased or remained

relatively constant over time, differences between female and

male proficiency remain. Compared to males, scores at age 9 for

female students are higher in reading, similar in mathematics,

and lower in science as measured by the National Assessment of

Educational Progress (NAEP). Females also have higher writing

proficiency in fourth grade.5

Female-male differences in reading, mathematics,

and science for 9-year-olds (in scale points)

SOURCE: NCES, National Assessment of Educational Progress.

Female-male achievement differences remain nearly unchanged

at age 13. For example, in 1992, the average reading proficiency

score for a 13-year-old female was 11 scale points higher than

for a 13-year-old male, while females scored at about the same

level in math and 4 scale points lower in science.

3

ACHIEVEMENT

Reading Math Science

0

12

7

10

3

4

1977

6

8

2

Females higher Males higher

1986 1992 1986 1992

1975 1984 1992 1978
When 17-year-olds are assessed near the end of high school,

female-male differences persist. For example, in 1992, average

reading proficiency for females was 12 scale points higher than

for males. This corresponds to about 40 percent of the difference

between the average scores of 13- and 17-year-olds in 1992. In

other words, the gap in reading proficiency between males and

females is roughly equivalent to about one and a half years of

schooling. 

In mathematics and science, 17-year-old females score lower on

average than males. In 1992, females scored 4 scale points lower

than males on the NAEP mathematics assessment (roughly

equivalent to about half a year of schooling), and 10 scale points

lower on the science assessment (about a year’s worth of science). Although both females and males have made gains in

mathematics and science achievement since 1982, the gender

gap for these subjects has not narrowed measurably.

Average Proficiency Scores

Subject Female Male

and year Age 9 Age 13 Age 17 Age 9 Age 13 Age 17

Reading

1975 216 262 291 204 250 280

1984 214 262 294 208 253 284

1992 215 265 296 206 254 284

Mathematics

1978 221 265 297 217 264 304

1986 222 268 299 222 270 305

1992 228 272 304 231 274 309

Science

1977 218 244 282 222 251 297

1986 221 247 282 227 256 295

1992 227 256 289 235 260 299

SOURCE: NCES, National Assessment of Educational Progress.

4
• Females are more likely than males to

come to school prepared to learn and

to participate in school activities.

In 1990, high school sophomores arrived at school better prepared than their counterparts did a decade earlier. However,

males were more likely than females to report that they usually

or often came to school without books; a paper, pen, or pencil;

or completed homework.

Percentage of high school sophomores 

who arrive at school unprepared

SOURCE: NCES, National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988, First

Follow-up Student Survey, 1990.

Participation in extracurricular activities may affect academic

performance, attachment to school, and social development, as

well as provide opportunities for students to apply academic

skills in other areas. Almost 83 percent of high school seniors in

1992 engaged in at least one extracurricular activity, with 

5

LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

1980 1990

10

6

20

15

Come to school

without paper,

pen, or pencil

1980 1990

17

14

27

22

Come to school

without completed

homework

1980 1990

6

10

8

Come to school

without books

5

Male

Female
females being more likely than males to participate in all types

of activities except sports. 

Percentage of high school seniors 

participating in extracurricular activities

Female Male

Any activity 84 81

Varsity sports 28 44

School music group 25 15

School play or musical 17 14

Yearbook or newspaper 24 14

Academic clubs 27 23

Student government 18 13

School service clubs 17 10

SOURCE: NCES, National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988, Second

Follow-up Student Survey, 1992.

• Female students are no less likely than

male students to have their parents

involved in their education.

Parents may be able to improve the academic performance of

their children by becoming more involved in their school life. In

1988, eighth-grade females were more likely than their male

peers to report talking to their parents about selecting courses,

about their school activities, and about their class studies. Males

and females were equally likely to have their parents review

their homework, limit their television watching, limit their

going out with friends, and visit their classes. Females were less

likely than males to have had their parents speak with their

teacher or guidance counselor. However, it is difficult to interpret this last finding without more specific information about

these contacts.6

6
Percentage of eighth-graders 

reporting parent involvement: 1988

Type of involvement Female Male

Talked about:

selecting classes 89 82

school activities 93 89

class studies 91 86

Checked homework 89 91

Limited T.V. viewing 63 64

Limited going out with friends 90 88

Spoke with teacher/counselor 56 64

Visited classes 28 29

SOURCE: NCES, National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988, Base Year

Survey, 1988.

• Both female and male students are following

a more rigorous curriculum than they were a

decade ago.

Between 1982 and 1992, the percentage of high school graduates

earning the 4 units of English and the 3 units each of science,

social studies, and mathematics recommended in A Nation At

Risk increased sharply, from 13 to 47 percent. While course taking increased for both genders through 1992, there was no measurable difference between the percentage of female and male

graduates completing these recommended courses.

7

CURRICULUM
Percentage of high school graduates taking the number of

courses in English, science, social studies, and mathematics

recommended in A Nation At Risk

SOURCE: NCES, High School and Beyond Transcript Study; 1987 and

1990 NAEP High School Transcript Studies; and National Education

Longitudinal Study Transcripts, 1992.

In 1992, female and male high school graduates on average

earned a similar number of total course units (24 credits).

Females took more credits in academic subjects than males (18

versus 17 credits), whereas in the class of 1969, males and

females took similar numbers of academic credits (15 each).7

• Female students are as likely as males to take

advanced math and science courses, and are

more likely to study a foreign language.

Between 1982 and 1992, the percentage of both female and male

graduates who took advanced mathematics and science courses

in high school increased, although for many subjects gender

parity had been attained by 1982. In the class of 1992, females

were less likely than males to take remedial mathematics in high 

8

1982 1987 1990 1992

12 14

27

39

30

41

47 47

Male

Female
school, more likely to take Algebra II, and just as likely to take

calculus. With respect to science, females were more likely than

males to take biology, and just as likely to take chemistry.

Females were less likely, however, to take physics.

In 1992, college-bound female high school graduates were more

likely than male graduates to study a foreign language for at

least 2 years in high school (78 versus 67 percent). In addition,

females were more than twice as likely as males to take 4 years

of a foreign language (19 versus 9 percent).8

9

Percentage of high school graduates taking

selected mathematics and science courses

Mathematics and 1982 1992

science courses Female Male Female Male

Mathematics

Remedial mathematics 30 36 15 20

Geometry 49 48 72 69

Algebra II 36 38 58 54

Trigonometry 11 13 21 21

Calculus 4 5 10 10

Science

Biology 81 77 94 92

Chemistry 31 32 57 54

Physics 9 18 21 28

Biology, chemistry,

and physics 7 13 19 24

SOURCE: NCES, The 1990 High School Transcript Study Tabulations, 1993 (based

on the High School and Beyond Transcript Study and the National Education

Longitudinal Study Transcripts, 1992).
• Females are slightly more likely than

males to make an immediate transition from high school to college.

Between 1976 and 1987, females and males were equally likely

to enroll in college in the fall following high school graduation;

however, since the late 1980s, women have been slightly more

likely than men to do so. 

Percentage of high school graduates enrolled in college

the October following high school graduation

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census,

October Current Population Surveys.

Furthermore, women are more likely than men to enroll in a 4-

year college after graduation from high school. In 1993, the

enrollment rate for women at 4-year institutions was 42 percent,

compared to 36 percent for men. Women and men were equally

likely to enroll in 2-year institutions after high school graduation

(22 percent).9

10

’73 ’77 ’81 ’92 ’85 ’89

Male

Female

20

40

60

80

100

0

Percent

POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION

ENROLLMENT
In 1992, the majority of students enrolled in undergraduate and

graduate programs were women, although more men were

enrolled in first-professional programs, such as medicine, law,

or dentistry.10

• Over the past 20 years, college attainment

rates among young females have increased

dramatically, while rates for males have

remained basically unchanged.

In the 1970s, female high school graduates aged 25–29 were less

likely than their male peers to have completed 1 or more years

of college. This trend reversed in the early 1990s, as a greater

percentage of graduating high school females began attending

postsecondary institutions. 

Percentage of 25- to 29-year-old high school graduates 

completing various amounts of college

1 or more years 4 or more years

Year Female Male Female Male

1971 38 49 18 26

1976 46 58 24 32

1981 48 53 23 27

1986 51 51 25 27

1991 54 52 27 27

Some college Bachelor’s degree

or more or more

1992 57 56 28 27

1994 62 59 27 27

NOTE: Beginning in 1992, the Current Population Survey changed the questions

it used to obtain the educational attainment of respondents.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, March Current

Population Surveys.

11

COMPLETION
A similar trend has occurred for female college graduates. In the

early 1970s, among high school graduates, about 20 percent of

women compared to about 27 percent of men aged 25–29 had

completed 4 or more years of college. By 1994, a similar percentage of men and women in this age group had earned a bachelor’s degree or more. 

Data on the number of degrees conferred demonstrate even

more clearly the educational progress of women relative to men.

In 1992, women earned more associate’s, bachelor’s, and master’s degrees than men, whereas in 1977 the reverse was true.

Though fewer doctoral and first-professional degrees were

awarded to women than to men in 1992, the gap has narrowed

considerably over time. For example, the percentage of first-professional degrees earned by women rose dramatically between

1960 and 1993: from 2 percent to 42 percent of all law degrees;

from 6 percent to 38 percent of all medical degrees; and from 1

percent to 34 percent of all dentistry degrees.11

Earned degrees conferred by institutions of higher education 

(numbers in thousands)

1977 1992

Female Male Female Male

Associate’s 195.5 210.8 296.8 207.5

Bachelor’s 424.0 495.5 615.7 520.8

Master’s 149.4 167.8 191.0 161.8

Doctoral 8.1 25.1 15.1 25.6

First-professional 12.0 52.4 29.1 45.1

SOURCE: Digest of Education Statistics, 1994, table 234.

• Women and men still tend to study different fields in college, although differences

have narrowed for undergraduates and in

some fields for graduates.

12
Similarities in the mathematics and science course taking (except

for physics) of women and men in high school disappear when

examining college transcripts. Among 1985–86 bachelor’s degree

recipients, women were much less likely than men to have taken

courses in the physical sciences, mathematics, computer science,

and engineering, but were more likely to have taken courses in the

life sciences. In the social and behavioral sciences, women were

more likely than men to have taken psychology and sociology, and

were less likely to have taken political science and economics.12

Differences in the college course-taking patterns of men and

women are related to the fields in which they choose to major. At

the bachelor’s level, women were about three times as likely as

men to graduate with degrees in education in 1991–92, although

this represents a decline from 1971. Women were also more likely than men to major in English, modern foreign languages, communications, psychology, and the health sciences. 

Percentage distribution of bachelor’s degrees

earned by women and men, by field

1972 1992

Major field Female Male Female Male

Total 100 100 100 100

Biological/life sciences 3 5 4 4

Business 3 22 20 26

Communications 1 2 5 4

Computer science 0 1 1 3

Education 37 10 14 4

Engineering 0 10 2 13

English 11 5 6 4

Modern foreign languages 4 1 2 1

Health sciences 6 1 8 2

Mathematics 2 3 1 2

Physical sciences 1 4 1 2

Psychology 5 5 8 3

Social sciences 15 20 10 14

Other 13 13 19 18

SOURCE: Digest of Education Statistics, 1994, tables 268–285.

13
Although the differences between men and women are decreasing in the biological/life sciences and business, women are still

less likely than men to major in these fields. Moreover, women

continue to be less likely than men to major in mathematics,

engineering, the physical sciences, computer sciences, and social

sciences.13

At the graduate level, the tendency of women and men to

choose different fields of study has declined in many major

fields. For example, differences in the proportions of women

and men earning master’s degrees in the life sciences, physical

sciences, computer science, and engineering have narrowed

over time. Differences in the proportions of men and women

earning master’s degrees in business management decreased

between the early 1970s and the mid-1980s, when the trend leveled off. Moreover, differences in the proportion of men and

women earning master’s degrees in the humanities and social

sciences have disappeared. 

However, in some fields of study, large gaps do remain. For

instance, at the master’s degree level, women were almost three

times as likely as men to earn graduate degrees in education and

the health professions, but only about one-seventh as likely to

earn degrees in engineering.14

• Females in the United States generally

have higher educational attainment than

their counterparts in other countries. 

Among U.S. women 25–64 years old in 1992, 84 percent had

completed high school—far more than their counterparts in

Japan, West Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, and

Canada. However, in several countries the educational attainment of younger generations of women is increasing rapidly.15

As a result, the gap is closing between the educational attainment of women in these countries and the United States. 

14
Women 25–34 years old in the United States are still much more

likely to complete higher education than their counterparts in

Japan and West Germany. Moreover, in 1987 the percentage of

women who were awarded university degrees in science and

engineering fields was much higher in the United States than in

other highly industrialized countries, including Japan and West

Germany.16

Percentage of 25- to 34-year-old females completing 

secondary and higher education in 1992

SOURCE: OECD, Indicators of Education Systems,

OECD Education Statistics, 1985–1992.

15

Canada

Italy

France

United

Kingdom

West

Germany

Japan

United

States

16

7

12

11

11

12

23

87

92

86

80

66

43

83

Higher

education

Secondary

education
• Employment and earnings rates rise with

educational attainment for both females and

males, but earnings are lower for females

than for males with the same education. 

The gap between the employment rates for women and men narrows with increasing levels of educational attainment. For example, in 1994, the difference between the employment rates of 25- to

29-year-old females and males was 20 percentage points for high

school graduates and 7 percentage points for college graduates. 

Percentage of females and males 

25–29 years old who were employed in 1994, 

by educational attainment

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census,

March Current Population Surveys, 1994.

16

Grades

9–11

High school

diploma

Some

college

Bachelor’s

degree

71

85 88 91

35

65

75

84

Male

Female

LABOR MARKET OUTCOMES
Female college graduates shared in the increased earnings of all

college graduates in the 1980s. Although female 4-year college

graduates earned less on average than male college graduates in

1993 ($26,000 and $32,700, respectively), the earnings advantage

that female college graduates enjoy over female high school

graduates is greater than that enjoyed by males.17 Females with

college degrees realized an earnings advantage over female high

school graduates that has increased between 1981 and 1993.

Median annual earnings of females 25–34 years old 

with different amounts of education relative 

to those with 12 years of school 

NOTE: One (1.0) on the scale represents earnings equal to those with

12 years of school; 2.0 represents double their earnings; 0.5 represents

half their earnings. The scale on the graph makes the distance between

1.0 and 2.0, or doubling, the same as that between 1.0 and 0.5, or halving.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, March

Current Population Surveys.

17

‘70 ‘72 ‘74 ‘76 ‘78 ‘80 ‘82 ‘84 ‘86 ‘88 ‘90 ‘93

9-11 years of school

16 or more years of school

13-15 years of school

1.00

1.25

1.50

1.75

0.75

2.00

0.50

1.00

1.25

1.50

1.75

0.75

2.00

0.50

Ratio
In summary, women have made important advances in education

over the last few decades, closing the gender gap in educational

attainment among younger women that existed 20 years ago. In

high school, females read and write better than males, although

they perform worse in mathematics and science. The mathematics

and science courses that females and males take in high school are

similar, with the exception that females are less likely than males

to study physics. Moreover, females are more likely than males to

go to college immediately after high school and are just as likely

to earn degrees. Although females tend to major in different subjects than males in college, many of these differences have narrowed over time. But despite large gains in educational attainment and labor force participation, significant differences in earnings persist between females and males, even at similar levels of

education.

18

SUMMARY
1The Condition of Education, 1995, 94, based on NCES, National Adult

Literary Survey, 1992.

2The Condition of Education, 1993, 20, based on U.S. Department of

Commerce, Bureau of the Census, October Current Population Surveys,

unpublished tabulations.

3The Condition of Education, 1994, 176, based on U.S. Department of

Commerce, Bureau of the Census, October 1992 Current Population

Survey.

4The Condition of Education, 1995, 347, based on U.S. Department of

Education, Office for Civil Rights, National Summaries from the

Elementary and Secondary School Civil Rights Survey, various years.

5The Condition of Education, 1995, 56, based on National Assessment of

Educational Progress, Trends in Academic Progress: Achievement of U.S.

Students in Science, 1969 to 1992; Mathematics, 1973 to 1992; Reading, 1971

to 1992; Writing, 1984 to 1992, 1994.

6The Condition of Education, 1994, 124, based on NCES, National

Education Longitudinal Study of 1988.

7The Condition of Education, 1994, 72, based on NCES, National

Education Longitudinal Study, 1992.

8The Condition of Education, 1994, 78, based on NCES, High School

and Beyond Transcript Study, National Education Longitudinal

Study Transcripts, 1992.

9The Condition of Education, 1995, 194, based on U.S. Department of

Commerce, Bureau of the Census, October Current Population Surveys.

10Digest of Education Statistics, 1994, table 234. For first-professional

degrees by type of program, see tables 249, 263, and 264.

11Digest of Education Statistics, 1994, table 249.

12The Condition of Education, 1994, 82, based on NCES, 1987 Survey of

Recent College Graduates (Transcript Data File).

13Digest of Education Statistics, 1994, tables 239 and 240.

14Digest of Education Statistics, 1994, tables 268–285.

15The Condition of Education, 1995, 74, based on Organization for

Economic Co-Operation and Development, Indicators of Education’s

Systems, Digest of International Education Statistics, forthcoming.

REFERENCES

19
16The Condition of Education, 1991, vol. 2, 36, based on UNESCO

Statistical Yearbook, 1989 and earlier editions; Digest of Education

Statistics, 1989; and U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the

Census, unpublished tabulations.

17U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, March Current

Population Surveys.

For more information, see the following NCES publications:

The Condition of Education, 1995. Washington, D.C.: 1995.

The Condition of Education, 1994. Washington, D.C.: 1994.

Digest of Education Statistics, 1994. Washington, D.C.: 1994.

Other Findings from The Condition of Education:

No. 1: High School Students Ten Years After A Nation At Risk

No. 2: The Educational Progress of Black Students

No. 3: America’s Teachers Ten Years After A Nation At Risk

No. 4: The Educational Progress of Hispanic Students

No. 6: The Cost of Higher Education

20
NCES constituents with access to the Internet can tap a rich collection of education-related information at the U.S. Department of

Education’s (ED) public Gopher/FTP/World Wide Web site,

including:

• announcements of new publications and data sets

• descriptions of NCES and ED programs

• statistical tables, charts, and data sets

• press releases

• general information about the Department

• searchable ED staff directory

• funding opportunities

• event calendars

• directories of effective programs

• directory of education-related information centers

• research findings and syntheses

• full-text publications for teachers, parents, and researchers

• pointers to public Internet resources at R&D Centers, 

Regional Laboratories, ERIC Clearinghouses, and other 

ED-funded institutions.

They can access the information by using:

A Gopher client, gopher.ed.gov or select North America-->U.S.

Department of Education. From the main gopher menu, NCES

produced information is available under Educational Research,

Improvement and Statistics (OERI & NCES)/National Center for

Education Statistics (NCES)/.

An FTP client, ftp to ftp.ed.gov, log on anonymous.

21

ELECTRONIC ACCESS TO

NCES AND OTHER ED INFORMATION
A World Wide Web client such as NCSA Mosaic or Lynx point to 

URL = http://www.ed.gov/

Dial-in users can access much of the same information through the

OERI Toll-Free Electronic Bulletin Board, which provides on-line

access to statistical data research findings, information about

Department of Education programs, and, in some cases, full texts of

departmental documents. Computer users can retrieve this information at any hour using a modem (at speeds up to 14400 baud)

and calling (800) 222-4922. Local direct, (202) 219-1511. 

22