NCES: Higher Education: Gaps in Access and Persistence Study

A new federal report by the National Center for Education Statistics highlights significant gaps that exist in access to and persistence in American higher education by race and gender -- but has little to say about inequalities by socioeconomic status.

The primary focus of the Higher Education: Gaps in Access and Persistence Study is to examine differences between males and females overall and within racial/ethnic groups. The racial/ethnic groups of interest include Blacks, Hispanics, Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islanders, and American Indians/Alaska Natives. The secondary focus of the report is to examine overall sex and racial/ethnic differences. In addition to the indicators, this report also includes descriptive multivariate analyses of variables that may influence male and female postsecondary attendance and attainment in different ways.