Almanac 2011: Student Demographics

Tables and Charts

Enrollments and Population

• Growing Proportions of Young Adults Are Enrolled in College

• Educational Attainment: Less Than a Third of Americans Have at Least a Bachelor’s Degree

• Projected Change in Numbers of New High-School Graduates, 2011-12 to 2021-22

• Increases in Undergraduate Enrollments, 1999-2009

• Most Students Attend Public Colleges

• Forecast for Growth on Campuses: More Women, Minorities

• For-Profit Colleges Grow Faster Than Other Types

• Campuses With the Largest Enrollments, Fall 2009

• Fastest-Growing Campuses, 2004-9

Student Characteristics

• Of All Doctoral Recipients, Those in Education Are Oldest, on Average

• Part-Time Students Tend to Be Older

• Who Are the Undergraduates?

• A Profile of Freshmen at 4-year Colleges, Fall 2010

• Characteristics of First-Time Undergraduates Who Took Remedial Courses in 2007-8

• Military Undergraduates Are More Likely to Attend 2-Year Colleges

• Many Undergraduates Work Long Hours Balancing Jobs With Studies

• Freshmen Report More Ambition, Lower Emotional Health

Degrees Awarded

• Business Was the Most Common Type of Bachelor’s Degree Awarded in 2008-9

• Growth in Science and Engineering Degrees Lags Behind That in Other Fields

• Colleges Awarding the Most Doctorates, by Selected Disciplines, 2008-9

• Degrees Awarded, by Type of Institution, 2008-9

The Year in Review: Characteristics Haven’t Changed Much, but Attitudes Have

For student demographics, 2010 seemed to be the year of holding steady. Despite dire predictions, enrollments remained strong. And reported graduation rates didn’t budge. Most of the changes weren’t headliners.

That’s due in part to the fact that many of the major studies of student demographics—including the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study and the high-school-graduate projections by the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education—are dated but weren’t scheduled for updating this year. But it’s also because the economic shocks of the last few years haven’t reshaped the United States’ student body—yet, at least. MORE »

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