Does Gender Composition Matter? Persistence in Field of Study for Male and Female College Graduates

• In Event: Postsecondary Opportunities and Trajectories

Abstract

In this paper, we analyze national data on college graduates to investigate the relationship between persistence in field of study and the gender composition of the field. We also consider how high school and college measures of achievement contribute to gaps observed in persistence rates. Results indicate that men and women are more likely to persist in same-sex dominated fields than their same gendered peers in either opposite-sex dominated or gender equitable fields. After accounting for students’ within-intended field of study college GPA, female students in male-dominated fields are no longer less likely to persist to degree than female students in female-dominated fields.

Authors

• Barbara Anne King, Florida International University

• Catherine C. Riegle-Crumb, The University of Texas