| Q: |
Does the high school dropout rate vary by sex and race? |
| A: |
Male and female high school youth have similar dropout rates, while dropout rates among racial and ethnic groups have greater variation. |
Percent of youth who dropped out of grades 10-12 in the preceding 12 months, 1975-2009
| |
Total |
Sex |
Race/ethnicity* |
| Male |
Female |
White |
Black |
Hispanic |
| 1972 |
6.1% |
5.9% |
6.3% |
5.3% |
9.5% |
11.2% |
| 1973 |
6.3 |
6.8 |
5.7 |
5.5 |
9.9 |
10.0 |
| 1974 |
6.7 |
7.4 |
6.0 |
5.8 |
11.6 |
9.9 |
| 1975 |
5.8 |
5.4 |
6.1 |
5.0 |
8.7 |
10.9 |
| 1976 |
5.9 |
6.6 |
5.2 |
5.6 |
7.4 |
7.3 |
| 1977 |
6.5 |
6.9 |
6.1 |
6.1 |
8.6 |
7.8 |
| 1978 |
6.7 |
7.5 |
5.9 |
5.8 |
10.2 |
12.3 |
| 1979 |
6.7 |
6.8 |
6.7 |
6.0 |
9.9 |
9.8 |
| 1980 |
6.1 |
6.7 |
5.5 |
5.2 |
8.2 |
11.7 |
| 1981 |
5.9 |
6.0 |
5.8 |
4.8 |
9.7 |
10.7 |
| 1982 |
5.5 |
5.8 |
5.1 |
4.7 |
7.8 |
9.2 |
| 1983 |
5.2 |
5.8 |
4.7 |
4.4 |
7.0 |
10.1 |
| 1984 |
5.1 |
5.4 |
4.8 |
4.4 |
5.7 |
11.1 |
| 1985 |
5.2 |
5.4 |
5.0 |
4.3 |
7.8 |
9.8 |
| 1986 |
4.7 |
4.7 |
4.7 |
3.7 |
5.4 |
11.9 |
| 1987 |
4.1 |
4.3 |
3.8 |
3.5 |
6.4 |
5.4 |
| 1988 |
4.8 |
5.1 |
4.4 |
4.2 |
5.9 |
10.4 |
| 1989 |
4.5 |
4.5 |
4.5 |
3.5 |
7.8 |
7.8 |
| 1990 |
4.0 |
4.0 |
3.9 |
3.3 |
5.0 |
7.9 |
| 1991 |
4.0 |
3.8 |
4.2 |
3.2 |
6.0 |
7.3 |
| 1992 |
4.4 |
3.9 |
4.9 |
3.7 |
5.0 |
8.2 |
| 1993 |
4.5 |
4.6 |
4.3 |
3.9 |
5.8 |
6.7 |
| 1994 |
5.3 |
5.2 |
5.4 |
4.2 |
6.6 |
10.0 |
| 1995 |
5.7 |
6.2 |
5.3 |
4.5 |
6.4 |
12.4 |
| 1996 |
5.0 |
5.0 |
5.1 |
4.1 |
6.7 |
9.0 |
| 1997 |
4.6 |
5.0 |
4.1 |
3.6 |
5.0 |
9.5 |
| 1998 |
4.8 |
4.6 |
4.9 |
3.9 |
5.2 |
9.4 |
| 1999 |
5.0 |
4.6 |
5.4 |
4.0 |
6.5 |
7.8 |
| 2000 |
4.8 |
5.5 |
4.1 |
4.1 |
6.1 |
7.4 |
| 2001 |
5.0 |
5.6 |
4.3 |
4.1 |
6.3 |
8.8 |
| 2002 |
3.6 |
3.7 |
3.4 |
2.6 |
4.9 |
5.8 |
| 2003 |
4.0 |
4.2 |
3.8 |
3.2 |
4.8 |
7.1 |
| 2004 |
4.7 |
5.1 |
4.3 |
3.7 |
5.7 |
8.9 |
| 2005 |
3.8 |
4.2 |
3.4 |
2.8 |
7.3 |
5.0 |
| 2006 |
3.8 |
4.1 |
3.4 |
2.9 |
3.8 |
7.0 |
| 2007 |
3.5 |
3.7 |
3.3 |
2.2 |
4.5 |
6.0 |
| 2008 |
3.5 |
3.1 |
4.0 |
2.3 |
6.4 |
5.3 |
| 2009 |
3.4 |
3.5 |
3.4 |
2.4 |
4.8 |
5.8 |
| Note: White and black race groups do not include youth of Hispanic ethnicity. Persons of Hispanic ethnicity can be of any race. |
[ Graph version ]
[ Excel file ]
- The event dropout rate in 2009 was essentially equal for female youth (3.4%) than male youth (3.5%).
- In 2009, the dropout rate for white youth (2.4%) has remained below the rates for blacks (4.8%) and Hispanics (5.8%).
- The annual proportion of youth in grades 10-12 who left school without completing a high school program was lower in 2009 than in the 1970s, regardless of sex, race, or ethnicity.
Internet citation: OJJDP Statistical Briefing Book. Online. Available: http://www.ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/population/qa01503.asp?qaDate=2009.
Released on March 05, 2012. Data Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Trends in High School Dropout and Completion Rates in the United States: 1972-2009. [Report no. 2012-006]. [ PDF]. Washington, D.C.: 2011.
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