Women continue to earn more college degrees than men in North Carolina, but recent data suggests that the gap between genders is changing. According to information from North Carolina’s public post-secondary schools, women still outnumber men at every level of higher education, though some ratios are narrowing.
Two decades ago, women earning associate degrees outnumbered men by more than two to one. Between 2017 and 2023, this ratio shifted to about 1.6 women for every man. In bachelor’s degree programs, women have consistently outpaced men by around 40% over the past twenty years. However, in the 2022–2023 academic year, this difference increased temporarily to 50%.
For master’s degrees, the proportion of female recipients has fluctuated slightly but generally remained at about 1.6 women for every man. Doctoral programs show a gradual increase in female graduates as well; the ratio rose from 0.9 in 2003 to 1.2 in 2023.
“It makes one thing clear: while women continue to dominate higher education in North Carolina, the nature of that trend is evolving.”
Additional data and insights on these trends can be found through NC TOWER (https://nctower.com/), a resource offering detailed information on educational outcomes across the state.
