ED6 College enrollment: Percentage of high school completers who were enrolled in college the October immediately after completing high school by gender and race and Hispanic origin, 1980–2021

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Characteristic 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Total 49.3 53.9 50.6 52.7 55.2 57.7 53.8 56.8 58.9 59.6 60.1 62.5 61.9 62.6 61.9 61.9 65.0 67.0 65.6 62.9 63.3 61.8 65.2 63.9 66.7 68.6 66.0 67.2 68.6 70.1 68.1 68.2 66.2 65.9 68.4 69.2 69.8 66.7 69.1 66.2 62.7 61.8
Gender
Male 46.7 54.8 49.1 51.9 56.0 58.6 55.8 58.3 57.1 57.6 58.0 57.9 60.0 59.9 60.6 62.6 60.1 63.6 62.4 61.4 59.9 60.1 62.1 61.2 61.4 66.5 65.8 66.1 65.9 66.0 62.8 64.7 61.3 63.5 64.0 65.8 67.5 61.1 66.9 62.0 59.3 54.9
Female 51.8 53.1 52.0 53.4 54.5 56.8 51.9 55.3 60.7 61.6 62.2 67.1 63.8 65.2 63.2 61.3 69.7 70.3 69.1 64.4 66.2 63.5 68.4 66.5 71.5 70.4 66.1 68.3 71.6 73.8 74.0 72.2 71.3 68.4 72.6 72.5 71.9 71.7 71.4 69.8 66.2 69.5
Race and Hispanic origina
White, non-Hispanic
Total 49.8 54.9 52.7 55.0 59.0 60.1 56.8 58.6 61.1 60.7 63.0 65.4 64.3 62.9 64.5 64.3 67.4 68.2 68.5 66.3 65.7 64.3 69.1 66.2 68.8 73.2 68.5 69.5 71.7 71.3 70.5 68.3 65.7 68.8 67.7 71.3 69.7 69.1 70.9 68.0 65.0 62.3
3-year moving averageb 51.5 52.4 54.2 55.5 57.9 58.6 58.5 58.8 60.1 61.6 63.0 64.2 64.2 63.9 64.0 65.4 66.6 68.1 67.7 66.8 65.4 66.3 66.5 68.0 69.4 70.2 70.4 70.0 70.8 71.2 70.1 68.2 67.6 67.4 69.3 69.6 70.1 69.9 69.3 68.0 65.3 63.7
Black, non-Hispanic
Total 42.7 42.7 35.8 38.2 39.8 42.2 36.9 52.2 44.4 53.4 46.8 46.4 48.2 55.6 50.8 51.2 56.0 58.5 61.9 58.9 54.9 55.0 59.4 57.5 62.5 55.7 55.5 55.7 55.7 69.5 62.0 67.1 56.4 56.7 70.2 55.6 57.3 59.4 64.5 49.8 57.5 59.2
3-year moving averageb 44.0 40.3 38.8 38.0 39.9 39.5 43.5 44.2 49.7 48.0 48.9 47.2 50.0 51.3 52.4 52.9 55.4 58.8 59.8 58.6 56.4 56.4 57.3 59.9 58.8 58.2 55.6 55.7 60.3 62.4 66.1 62.1 60.5 60.7 60.6 60.8 57.5 60.7 58.1 57.5 55.4 58.3
Asian, non-Hispanic
Total 84.1 75.6 86.7 82.3 88.8 88.4 92.1 84.7 86.1 81.5 80.1 90.9 83.2 91.9 82.7 73.6 89.8 82.7 85.2
3-year moving averageb 74.2 81.6 80.9 85.1 85.8 90.1 88.1 87.4 83.9 82.3 83.6 84.2 88.5 85.7 82.0 82.1 82.1 86.0 83.8
Hispanic
Total 52.3 52.1 43.2 54.2 44.3 51.0 44.0 33.5 57.1 55.1 42.7 57.2 55.0 62.2 49.1 53.7 50.8 65.6 47.4 42.3 52.9 51.7 53.6 58.6 61.8 54.0 57.9 64.0 63.9 59.3 59.7 66.6 70.3 59.8 65.2 68.9 72.0 61.0 65.4 63.4 56.2 58.6
3-year moving averageb 49.6 48.7 49.4 46.7 49.3 46.1 42.3 45.0 48.5 52.7 52.5 52.6 58.2 55.7 55.0 51.6 57.6 55.3 51.9 47.4 48.6 52.8 54.8 57.7 57.7 57.5 58.5 62.0 62.3 60.9 62.3 66.1 65.9 65.5 64.7 69.0 67.6 66.5 63.4 61.5 59.3 57.3
— Not available.
a For data before 2003, the 1977 U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) standards for data on race and ethnicity were used to classify persons into one of the following four racial groups: White, Black, American Indian or Alaskan Native, or Asian or Pacific Islander. The revised 1997 OMB standards were used for data for 2003 and later years. Persons could select one or more of five racial groups: White, Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, or Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. Included in the total but not shown separately are American Indian or Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and "Two or more races." Beginning in 2003, those in a given racial category represent those reporting only that race. Data from 2003 onward are not directly comparable with data from earlier years. Data on race and Hispanic origin are collected separately. Persons of Hispanic origin may be of any race.
b Because some short-term data fluctuations are associated with small sample sizes, moving averages are used to produce more stable estimates for the race and Hispanic origin data. A 3-year moving average is the weighted average of the estimates for the year prior to the reported year, the reported year, and the following year. For 2021, a 2-year moving average is used, reflecting an average of the 2020 and 2021 estimates. For Asian data, the moving average for 2003 reflects an average of 2003 and 2004.
NOTE: Enrollment in 2-year or 4-year college as of October of each year for individuals ages 16–24 who had completed high school earlier in the calendar year. High school completers include recipients of a General Educational Development (GED) or other high school equivalency credential. Data are based on sample surveys of the civilian noninstitutionalized population. Some estimates have been revised since previous publication in America's Children.
SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, School Enrollment Supplement.