Breaking down data by race and ethnicity can provide a better understanding of education performance and outcomes than examining statistics representative of all students. In observation of Hispanic Heritage Month, this blog presents NCES findings on the learning experiences of Hispanic students throughout their education careers.
Early Childhood Education
- In 2019, 43 percent of Hispanic 3- to 4-year-olds and 86 percent of Hispanic 5-year-olds were enrolled in school.
K–12 Education
- Enrollment of Hispanic students in public schools has grown from 6.0 million in 1995 to 13.8 million in fall 2018 (the last year of data available).
- Between 2009 and 2018, the percentage of students enrolled in public schools who were Hispanic increased from 22 to 27 percent.
- In school year 2018–19, the adjusted cohort graduation rate (ACGR) was 82 percent for Hispanic public school students. The ACGRs for Hispanic students ranged from 60 percent in the District of Columbia to 91 percent in Alabama and West Virginia.
- The overall status dropout rate for Hispanic students decreased from 16.7 percent in 2010 to 7.7 percent in 2019.
- Between 2010 and 2020, the percentage of Hispanic 25- to 29-year-olds who had completed at least high school increased by more than 20 percentage points, from 69 to 90 percent.
Postsecondary Education
- In 2007, postsecondary enrollment of Hispanic students surpassed 2.0 million for the first time in history. In 2012, enrollment of Hispanic students surpassed enrollment of Black students, making Hispanic students the largest minority population enrolled in postsecondary education.
- Between fall 2009 and fall 2019, Hispanic undergraduate enrollment increased by 48 percent (from 2.4 million to 3.5 million students).
- In 2017–18, there were 99,718 bachelor's degrees awarded to Hispanic students at Hispanic-serving institutions, which have a full-time undergraduate enrollment that is at least 25 percent Hispanic.
- In academic year 2018–19, 17 percent of bachelor's degrees conferred to Hispanic graduates were in a STEM field.
- About 58 percent of Hispanic students who began seeking a bachelor's degree full-time at a 4-year institution in fall 2013 completed that degree at the same institution within 6 years.
By Mandy Dean, AIR
