In the 2023 to 2024 school year, women earned about 61% of all degrees and certificates conferred at public higher education institutions, while men earned 39%. Women outpaced men in all seven degree and certificate categories.
The most significant gaps are in certificates, associate’s degrees and masters degrees, and the smallest is in doctoral degrees.
The share of degrees isn't the only area where women are eclipsing men – so is the overall number of degrees. Over the last five years, women earning graduate and doctoral degrees grew by 27% and 41%, respectively. For men, graduate and doctoral degrees grew by 14% and 2%, respectively.
Oklahoma’s numbers are on par with national trends. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, in the 2021 to 2022 academic year — the year for which the most recent statistics are available — women earned 59% of associate degrees, to men’s 41%. For bachelor’s degrees, women earned 63% to men’s 37%.
Nationally, the top six fields of study for bachelor’s degrees were: health professions; psychology; biological and biomedical services; social sciences and history; business; and engineering.
In Oklahoma, for all degrees and certificates conferred this year, the top fields of study were business and management, health professions and education.
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