US Workforce and College-Educated Females

Women are currently on track to make up a majority of the college-educated labor force in 2019, marking a historic turning point in gender parity. 

According to the Pew Research Fact Tank, in the first quarter of 2019, "29.5 million women in the labor force had at least a bachelor’s degree." This effectively matches the number of college-educated men in the workforce (29.3 million). There will soon be more college-educated women than college-educated men in the workforce, although it's important to note that less than half of all U.S. workers have a college degree.

Data collected by the National Center for Education Statistics shows that more bachelor's degrees were received by women than men during the 1981-82 academic school year. And, since that time, women have consistently outpaced men in earning college degrees. The latest research shows that 57% of bachelor's degrees were earned by women in the 2016-2017 school year. 

A recent article published by National Public Radio (NPR) stated, "While women have made up a majority of college-educated adults for roughly four decades, that strength has not always been reflected in the work force, where men have traditionally dominated. Men still outnumber women as a percentage of U.S. workers, but the gap has narrowed significantly in recent years." The article also highlights that there continues to be gender pay inequitie, even when both males and females have college degrees. "Women have been told that more education will lead to better wages, according to a 2018 Georgetown University study. But despite having similar qualifications, there's still a pay imbalance."

Read the full article here: https://www.npr.org/2019/06/20/734408574/new-report-says-college-educated-women-will-soon-make-up-majority-of-u-s-labor-f