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Education. While the proportion of women earning

Education: An Overviewrimary, secondary, and higher educationorganizations are tasked with, among otherthings, preparing people for careers. Until the

later decades of the 20th century women were oftenopenly discouraged from the study of certain subjects(e.g., science, mathematics) and from obtaining higherdegrees. Policies enacted during this time periodsought and current practice aims to eliminatediscrimination at all levels of education. This ShortSubject presents degree attainment trends forCalifornia women since the 1960s, compares these tonational rates, breaks out rates according to race/ethniccategory, and offers a brief discussion.WOMEN AND DEGREE ATTAINMENT

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e made significant strides in theirrates of degree attainment since the 1960s (Figure 1), adecade that included a number of policy changesaimed at increasing educational opportunities such asthose found in California's Master Plan for Higher

terminal high school degrees or the equivalent(hereafter, high school completion) has remainedrelatively stable, the proportion of women earning bothBachelor’s and Post­Bachelor’s degrees has risensteadily. In 2011, 20 percent of California’s womenearned Bachelor’s degrees and 10 percent earned Post­Bachelor’s degrees.NATIONAL DEGREE ATTAINMENT

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ata suggest that California may fallshort of national educational attainment rates forwomen (Figure 2). While a slightly larger proportionearn a Bachelor's degree than is true nationally (20percent and 18 percent, respectively), Californiawomen are less likely to complete high school. About19 percent of California women do not earn a highschool degree compared to 13 percent nationally.California women appear equally likely to completePost­Bachelor's degrees than women are nationally.

SHORT SUBJECTSApril 2013 S­13­009

California Women andCA WOMEN AND GIRLS SERIES

California Research Bureau ♦ California State Library ♦ www.library.ca.gov/crb ♦ (916) 653­7843

WOMEN, DEGREE ATTAINMENT, ANDRThA

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ifornia's women maybe related to the diversity of the state's population.Women from different race/ethnic backgrounds exhibitdisparate patterns of education (Figure 3). More than40 percent of Latinas leave school before earning theirhigh school degrees; this is six times the rate of Whitewomen (6 percent) in California. Other minoritywomen are roughly twice as likely as White women toleave high school prior to completion.The rate at which women finish high school also variesacross race/ethnic category. Sixty­six percent ofAmerican Indian/Alaskan Native women earn terminalhigh school degrees followed closely by African­American women (65 percent). While these relativelyhigh rates are achievements and many women withterminal high school degrees may receive some collegeand vocational training (not analyzed here), moreattention could be paid to the fact that these womendid not complete a college degree. Thus, most women,irrespective of their race/ethnic backgrounds, do not goon to complete higher education degrees.Attainment of more than a high school diploma, anachievement associated with higher incomes, differssharply across race/ethnic categories. A largeproportion of White and Asian­American women (38and 46 percent, respectively) earn Bachelor's and Post­Bachelor's degrees. In comparison, only 11 percent ofLatinas, 17 percent of American Indian/Alaskan Nativewomen, and 24 percent of African­American womenearn advanced degrees.BWR

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n have higher levels ofeducation than they did in prior years, disparitiesacross different race/ethnic backgrounds remain. Thereis likely additional variation according to other factorsassociated with inequality. Thus, analyses that includenativity, family generation, and socio­economic statusmay provide more insight into which women achievemore or less education. Further, race/ethnic categoriessuch as Latina and Asian­American encompass a widevariety of ethnicities that may be analyzed separately.Higher rates of high school completion and morewomen from each race/ethnic category earning collegedegrees might mean, among other things, a moreskilled California workforce and more purchasing

power in the market. Programs aimed at advancing allgroups of women through high school completioncould be evaluated and developed. Also, in reference toWhite and Asian­American higher­education rates,Latinas, African­American, and American Indian/Alaskan Native women may benefit from programsaimed at advancing them beyond high school.F

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res, Higher Education and Childrenin Immigrant Families, Future of Children, 2011.

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u, Current Population Survey Internet andComputer Use Supplement Public Use File, 2011.

2 U.S. Census Bureau, 2011 American Community Survey PublicUse Microdata Sample, 2012.

This Short Subject was requested by the CaliforniaCommission on the Status of Women and Girls:www.women.ca.gov.The California Research Bureau is a division ofthe California State Library, providing in­depthresearch and nonpartisan public policy analysisto members of the State Legislature and the Governor.www.library.ca.gov/crb.The authors of this short subject, Tonya D.Lindsey, Ph.D., and Matthew K. Buttice, Ph.D., maybe reached at tonya.lindsey@library.ca.gov andmatthew.buttice@library.ca.gov, respectively.

California Research Bureau ♦ California State Library ♦ www.library.ca.gov/crb ♦ (916) 653­7843