Indicator 26: STEM Degrees
(Last Updated: February 2019)

Overall, a higher percentage of bachelor’s degrees were awarded to females than to males in 2015–16 (58 vs. 42 percent). However, in STEM fields, a lower percentage of bachelor’s degrees were awarded to females than to males (36 vs. 64 percent). This pattern—in which females received higher percentages of bachelor’s degrees overall but lower percentages of bachelor’s degrees in STEM fields—was observed across all racial/ethnic groups.

Young adults with bachelor’s or higher degrees in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) tend to have more positive economic outcomes, such as higher median earnings, than do those with degrees in non-STEM fields.¹ This indicator examines the percentage of bachelor’s degrees awarded in STEM fields by race/ethnicity and gender for U.S. citizens and permanent residents.

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Figure 26.1. STEM bachelor’s degrees as a percentage of total bachelor’s degrees conferred by postsecondary institutions, by race/ethnicity: Academic year 2015–16

NOTE: Data are for postsecondary institutions participating in Title IV federal financial aid programs. STEM fields include biological and biomedical sciences, computer and information sciences, engineering and engineering technologies, mathematics and statistics, and physical sciences and science technologies. Reported racial/ethnic distributions of students by level of degree, field of degree, and sex were used to estimate race/ethnicity for students whose race/ethnicity was not reported. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Although rounded numbers are displayed, the figures are based on unrounded data.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), Fall 2016, Completions component. See Digest of Education Statistics 2017, tables 318.45 and 322.30.

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Of the 1.8 million bachelor’s degrees awarded in 2015–16, about 331,000 (18 percent) were in STEM fields. The percentage of bachelor’s degrees awarded that were in STEM fields varied by race/ethnicity. For example, the percentage of bachelor’s degrees awarded to Asian students that were STEM degrees (33 percent) was almost double the overall percentage of bachelor’s degrees awarded in STEM fields. The percentage of bachelor’s degrees awarded to students of Two or more races that were STEM degrees (20 percent) was also higher than the overall percentage of bachelor’s degrees awarded in STEM fields. In contrast, the percentages of bachelor’s degrees awarded to Hispanic (15 percent), Pacific Islander (15 percent), American Indian/Alaska Native (14 percent), and Black students (12 percent) that were STEM degrees were lower than the overall percentage of bachelor’s degrees awarded in STEM fields. The percentage of bachelor’s degrees awarded to White students that were STEM degrees (18 percent) was about the same as the overall percentage of bachelor’s degrees awarded in STEM fields.

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Figure 26.2. Percentage of total and STEM bachelor’s degrees conferred by postsecondary institutions, by race/ethnicity and sex: Academic year 2015–16

NOTE: Data are for postsecondary institutions participating in Title IV federal financial aid programs. STEM fields include biological and biomedical sciences, computer and information sciences, engineering and engineering technologies, mathematics and statistics, and physical sciences and science technologies. Reported racial/ethnic distributions of students by level of degree, field of degree, and sex were used to estimate race/ethnicity for students whose race/ethnicity was not reported. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. Although rounded numbers are displayed, the figures are based on unrounded data.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), Fall 2016, Completions component. See Digest of Education Statistics 2017, tables 318.45, 322.30, 322.40, and 322.50.

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Overall, a higher percentage of bachelor’s degrees were awarded to females than to males in 2015–16 (58 vs. 42 percent). However, in STEM fields, a lower percentage of bachelor’s degrees were awarded to females than to males (36 vs. 64 percent). This pattern—in which females received higher percentages of bachelor’s degrees overall but lower percentages of bachelor’s degrees in STEM fields—was observed across all racial/ethnic groups. The gap between the percentage of STEM bachelor’s degrees awarded to males and the percentage awarded to females was largest among White students (33 percentage points), followed by Pacific Islander (28 percentage points), Hispanic (25 percentage points), American Indian/Alaska Native (23 percentage points), Asian students (21 percentage points), and students of Two or more races (21 percentage points). Black students (11 percentage points) had the smallest gap between the percentage of STEM bachelor’s degrees awarded to males and the percentage awarded to females.

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Endnotes

¹ For more information on economic outcomes by degree field, please see Digest of Education Statistic 2016, table 505.10.

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