Trends in Bachelor's Degree Conferrals Provide Insights to Expanding the US Candidate Pipeline

Overview

As the number of programs in the United States continues to grow, it follows that more students are needed to fill seats. Over the last decade, demand growth for US programs has largely been fueled by international candidates. The current political climate, however, has disrupted international student mobility trends, and programs are now looking to expand their domestic candidate pipelines with renewed urgency. This research brief discusses trends in bachelor’s degree conferrals among US citizens and identifies opportunities to expand the US candidate pipeline.

Quick Facts

• Overall, the number of bachelor’s degrees conferred to US citizens is growing, but this growth has slowed. While bachelor’s conferrals grew an average of 3.2 percent annually between 2006-07 and 2011-2012, year-on-year growth has slowed to about 1 percent in 2014-15 and 2015-16.
• Demographic shifts among bachelor’s earners suggest women and Hispanic Americans may be the key to expanding the US candidate pipeline.
• The gap between the total number of bachelor’s degrees earned by women and men annually has grown 25.3 percent over the last ten years. In 2015-16, about 280,000 more women than men earned a bachelor’s degree.
• Over the last ten years, the number of bachelor’s degrees earned annually by Hispanic Americans increased 104.5 percent, growing an average of 8.1 percent annually.