U.S. higher education enrollment rates, by age group 1970-2017
Share of adult population enrolled in college or other higher education in the United States from 1970-2017, by age group
This statistic shows the share of different age groups across the U.S. adult population who were enrolled in college or other higher education from 1970 to 2017. Of those aged 20 to 21 years of age, 55 percent were enrolled in higher education as of 2017, a considerable increase compared to 31.9 percent in 1970.
Share of adult population enrolled in college or other higher education in the United States from 1970-2017, by age group
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| Ages 18 to 19 | Ages 20 to 21 | Ages 22 to 24 | Ages 25 to 29 | Ages 30 to 34 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| '17 | 48% | 55% | 28.4% | 12.1% | 5.9% |
| '16 | 50.5% | 55.5% | 28.8% | 13.2% | 6.4% |
| '15 | 48.8% | 53.3% | 28.8% | 13.2% | 6.6% |
| '14 | 48.9% | 51.4% | 29.6% | 13.1% | 6.4% |
| '13 | 46.6% | 52.8% | 29.7% | 13.3% | 6.7% |
| '12 | 47.3% | 54% | 30.7% | 14% | 7.5% |
| '11 | 50.1% | 52.7% | 31.1% | 14.8% | 7.7% |
| '10 | 51.2% | 52.4% | 28.9% | 14.6% | 8.3% |
| '09 | 49.8% | 51.7% | 30.4% | 13.5% | 8.1% |
| '08 | 48.6% | 50.1% | 28.2% | 13.2% | 7.3% |
| '06 | 46.2% | 47.5% | 26.7% | 11.7% | 7.2% |
| '04 | 47.8% | 48.9% | 26.3% | 13% | 6.6% |
| '02 | 45.3% | 47.8% | 25.6% | 12.1% | 6.6% |
| '00 | 44.7% | 44.1% | 24.6% | 11.4% | 6.7% |
| '98 | 46.4% | 44.8% | 24.9% | 11.9% | 6.6% |
| '96 | 44.9% | 44.4% | 24.8% | 11.9% | 6.1% |
| '94 | 43.9% | 44.9% | 24% | 10.8% | 6.7% |
| '92 | 44.3% | 44% | 23.7% | 9.8% | 6.1% |
| '90 | 42.7% | 39.7% | 21% | 9.7% | 5.8% |
| '88 | 41.8% | 39.1% | 18.2% | 8.3% | 5.9% |
| '86 | 41.5% | 33% | 17.9% | 8.8% | 6% |
| '84 | 38.6% | 33.9% | 17.3% | 9.1% | 6.3% |
| '82 | 36.5% | 34% | 16.8% | 9.6% | 6.3% |
| '80 | 35.9% | 31% | 16.3% | 9.3% | 6.4% |
| '78 | 35.6% | 29.5% | 16.3% | 9.4% | 6.4% |
| '76 | 36% | 32% | 17.1% | 10% | 6% |
| '74 | 33.2% | 30.2% | 15.1% | 9.6% | 5.7% |
| '72 | 35.9% | 31.4% | 14.8% | 8.6% | 4.6% |
| '70 | 37.3% | 31.9% | 14.9% | 7.5% | 4.2% |
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