What are Drop Out Rate Trends?

Question:
What are the dropout rates of high school students?
Response:
The status dropout rate represents the percentage of an age group that is not enrolled in school and has not earned a high school credential (i.e., diploma or equivalent, such as a General Educational Development [GED] certificate). Status dropout rates are reported for 16- through 24-year-olds. The status dropout rate for this age group declined from 15 percent in 1972 to 9 percent in 2005. A decline was also seen between 2000 and 2005, the more recent years of this time span (11 vs. 9 percent).

Status dropout rates and changes in these rates over time differ by race/ethnicity. The status dropout rates for Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics each generally declined between 1972 and 2005. However, for each year between 1972 and 2005, the status dropout rate was lowest for Whites and highest for Hispanics. Although the gaps between the rates of Blacks and Whites and Hispanics and Whites have decreased, the patterns have not been consistent. The Black-White gap narrowed during the 1980s, with no measurable change during the 1970s or between 1990 and 2005. In contrast, the Hispanic-White gap narrowed between 1990 and 2005, with no measurable change in the gap during the 1970s and 1980s.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2007). The Condition of Education 2007 (NCES 2007-064), Indicator 23.

Percentage of high school dropouts (status dropouts) among persons 16 to 24 years old, by race/ethnicity: Selected years, 1972-2005                                    
Year    Total¹  Race/ethnicity²                
                White   Black   Hispanic       
1972    14.6    12.3    21.3    34.3   
1980    14.1    11.4    19.1    35.2   
1985    12.6    10.4    15.2    27.6   
1990    12.1    9.0     13.2    32.4   
1995    12.0    8.6     12.1    30.0   
1996    11.1    7.3     13.0    29.4   
1997    11.0    7.6     13.4    25.3   
1998    11.8    7.7     13.8    29.5   
1999    11.2    7.3     12.6    28.6   
2000    10.9    6.9     13.1    27.8   
2001    10.7    7.3     10.9    27.0   
2002    10.5    6.5     11.3    25.7   
2003    9.9     6.3     10.9    23.5   
2004    10.3    6.8     11.8    23.8   
2005    9.4     6.0     10.4    22.4   
¹Includes other race/ethnicity categories not separately shown.
²Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Beginning in 2003, respondents were able to identify as being more than one race. From 2003 onwards, the Black and White categories include individuals who considered themselves to be of only one race.

NOTE: The status dropout rate is the percentage of 16- through 24-year-olds who are not enrolled in high school and who lack a high school credential. A high school credential includes a high school diploma or equivalent credential such as a General Educational Development (GED) certificate. Estimates beginning in 1987 reflect new editing procedures for cases with missing data on school enrollment items. Estimates beginning in 1992 reflect new wording of the educational attainment item. Estimates beginning in 1994 reflect changes due to newly instituted computer-assisted interviewing.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2007). The Condition of Education 2007 (NCES 2007-064), Table 23-1.

Related Tables and Figures: (Listed by Release Date)

• 2007, Digest of Education Statistics 2006, Table 102. Public high school graduates and dropouts, by race/ethnicity and state or jurisdiction: 2001–02 and 2003–04
• 2007, Digest of Education Statistics 2006, Table 104. Percentage of high school dropouts (status dropouts) among persons 16 through 24 years old, by sex and race/ethnicity: Selected years, 1960 through 2005
• 2007, Digest of Education Statistics 2006, Table 105. Percentage of high school dropouts (status dropouts) among persons 16 through 24 years old, by income level, and percentage distribution of dropouts, by labor force status and educational attainment: 1970 through 2005
• 2004, The Condition of Education 2004: Event dropout rates by family income, 1972–2001

Other Resources: (Listed by Release Date)

• 2007, Dropout Rates in the United States: 2005
• 2006, Dropout Rates in the United States: 2002 and 2003
• 2006, Dropout Rates in the United States: 2004
• 2004, Dropout Rates in the United States: 2001
• 2003, Data File: Common Core of Data Local Education Agency Dropout and Completion Data: School Year 2000-01
• 2003, Public High School Dropouts and Completers from the Common Core of Data: School Year 2000-01
• 2000, A Recommended Approach to Providing High School Dropout and Completion Rates at the State Level