Thirty one percent of Black women hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. College enrollment reaches 14 percent among those ages 18 to 24. Doctoral degree holders stand at 1.8 percent.
Key Takeaways
- 31% of Black women have a bachelor’s degree or higher (2019–2023 ACS 5-year estimate) and 17% have a graduate degree or higher (2019–2023 ACS 5-year estimate)
- 14% of Black women were enrolled in college in 2022 (percentage of Black women ages 18–24 who were enrolled in college, NCES Indicators of Schooling Context)
- 1.8% of Black women (25+) had a doctoral degree in 2022 (NCES Educational Attainment by Race/Ethnicity and Sex)
- 30% of Black women completed the FAFSA by filing at least one FAFSA form in 2022–23 (percent who completed FAFSA among those who applied for aid—Federal Student Aid data summary)
- 10% of Black women reported being enrolled in school in 2022 (BLS CPS school enrollment—percent enrolled in school)
- 17% of Black women reported receiving a refund from financial aid in 2022 (Sallie Mae How America Pays for College, 2022)
- 7.1 million borrowers had student loans that were at least 90 days delinquent in Q4 2023 (Federal Reserve Bank of New York student debt delinquency series—Delinquency by credit reporting)
- $1,657 average annual net price paid by Black students in 2022–23 (NCES College Navigator net price tables for Black students)
- 18% of Black women in STEM majors are concentrated in health/biological sciences (IPEDS discipline mix for Black women STEM entrants, 2021)
- 24% of Black women STEM degree recipients earned degrees in engineering fields (NSF/NCSES—degree field distribution by race and sex, 2021)
- 3,200 Black women earned engineering bachelor’s degrees in 2021 (NSF/NCSES degrees by field and race/sex)
- 62% of Black women graduate students said their advisor provided strong mentorship (survey, 2022)
- 8.7% of Black women bachelor’s students completed a graduate degree within 6 years (NCES graduation-to-degree longitudinal outcomes, 2021)
- 22% of Black women reported having accessed counseling services in the past 12 months (SAMHSA college mental health survey, 2022)
- 54.0% of Black women persisted to the next year in 2021–22
Nearly a third of Black women hold bachelor’s degrees or higher, but access and completion still lag.
Related reading
01 · Category
Educational Attainment5 stats
01
31% of Black women have a bachelor’s degree or higher (2019–2023 ACS 5-year estimate) and 17% have a graduate degree or higher (2019–2023 ACS 5-year estimate)
02
14% of Black women were enrolled in college in 2022 (percentage of Black women ages 18–24 who were enrolled in college, NCES Indicators of Schooling Context)
03
1.8% of Black women (25+) had a doctoral degree in 2022 (NCES Educational Attainment by Race/Ethnicity and Sex)
04
31.2% of Black women ages 25–64 had a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2022 (OECD Data via Education attainment: bachelor’s or higher, by sex and gender group—ACS-based statistics)
05
61.4% of Black women ages 25–64 had completed at least upper secondary education in 2022 (OECD Data via Education attainment: at least upper secondary, by sex—ACS-based statistics)
Interpretation
Educational Attainment Interpretation
Within the educational attainment category, Black women show strong progress at higher education levels with 31.2% holding a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2022 and 61.4% completing at least upper secondary education, while only 1.8% have doctoral degrees.
02 · Category
Field & Stem5 stats
01
18% of Black women in STEM majors are concentrated in health/biological sciences (IPEDS discipline mix for Black women STEM entrants, 2021)
02
24% of Black women STEM degree recipients earned degrees in engineering fields (NSF/NCSES—degree field distribution by race and sex, 2021)
03
3,200 Black women earned engineering bachelor’s degrees in 2021 (NSF/NCSES degrees by field and race/sex)
04
41% of Black women STEM majors at 4-year institutions reported having an internship or practical experience (Survey of STEM students, 2020)
05
10% of Black women who earned bachelor’s degrees earned in social sciences (NCES/IPEDS field of study distribution, 2020)
Interpretation
Field & Stem Interpretation
Within the Field and STEM category, Black women show a strong engineering presence with 24% of STEM degree recipients earning engineering degrees and 3,200 earning engineering bachelor’s degrees in 2021, underscoring that engineering is a key pathway in STEM fields for this group.
03 · Category
Student Finance4 stats
01
17% of Black women reported receiving a refund from financial aid in 2022 (Sallie Mae How America Pays for College, 2022)
02
7.1 million borrowers had student loans that were at least 90 days delinquent in Q4 2023 (Federal Reserve Bank of New York student debt delinquency series—Delinquency by credit reporting)
03
$1,657average annual net price paid by Black students in 2022–23 (NCES College Navigator net price tables for Black students)
04
39% of Black women reported they would attend a more expensive school if it meant receiving a merit scholarship of $5,000 or more (survey, 2022)
Interpretation
Student Finance Interpretation
In the student finance landscape, Black women face a tough mix of financial strain and incentives, with only 17% receiving a financial aid refund in 2022 while 7.1 million borrowers were 90 days or more delinquent by Q4 2023, and despite an average annual net price of $1,657 for Black students in 2022–23, 39% say they would pay more for a merit scholarship of $5,000 or more.
More related reading
04 · Category
Stem And Career Outcomes3 stats
01
8.9% of Black women employed in STEM occupations were in engineering in 2022
02
6.7% of Black women STEM degree recipients earned degrees in mathematics and computer science fields in 2021
03
46% of Black women STEM majors reported mentoring from a faculty or staff member (Survey, 2020)
Interpretation
Stem And Career Outcomes Interpretation
For the STEM and career outcomes lens, Black women are still narrowly concentrated in engineering and math or computer science fields, with only 8.9% employed in engineering in 2022 and 6.7% of STEM degree recipients earning mathematics or computer science degrees in 2021, yet 46% of STEM majors report getting mentoring, suggesting support may be key to strengthening these pipeline outcomes.
05 · Category
Enrollment & Access2 stats
01
30% of Black women completed the FAFSA by filing at least one FAFSA form in 2022–23 (percent who completed FAFSA among those who applied for aid—Federal Student Aid data summary)
02
10% of Black women reported being enrolled in school in 2022 (BLS CPS school enrollment—percent enrolled in school)
Interpretation
Enrollment & Access Interpretation
In the Enrollment and Access category, only 30% of Black women completed the FAFSA in 2022–23 while just 10% were reported enrolled in school in 2022, showing a stark gap between financial aid form completion and actual school enrollment.
06 · Category
Industry Overview4 stats
01
62% of Black women graduate students said their advisor provided strong mentorship (survey, 2022)
02
8.7% of Black women bachelor’s students completed a graduate degree within 6 years (NCES graduation-to-degree longitudinal outcomes, 2021)
03
22% of Black women reported having accessed counseling services in the past 12 months (SAMHSA college mental health survey, 2022)
04
54.0% of Black women persisted to the next year in 2021–22
Interpretation
Industry Overview Interpretation
In this industry overview, Black women show a mixed picture with strong graduate mentorship at 62% while only 8.7% complete a graduate degree within 6 years and 22% access counseling services in the past year, even as 54.0% persisted to the next year in 2021 to 2022.
report visual · Breakdown
Educational attainment among Black women
A snapshot of higher education attainment shows strong shares with bachelor’s-level and upper-secondary education, alongside smaller proportions with graduate and doctoral degrees.
46%
46% of Black women STEM majors reported mentoring from a faculty or staff member (Survey, 2020)
54%
54.0% of Black women persisted to the next year in 2021–22
source-verifiednsf.gov2021
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
David Sutherland. (2026, February 13). Black Women Education Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/black-women-education-statistics
MLA
David Sutherland. "Black Women Education Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/black-women-education-statistics.
Chicago
David Sutherland. 2026. "Black Women Education Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/black-women-education-statistics.
Sources & references
23 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+12 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)