Getting an Education - Dropping Out

Dropout Rates

"Status" dropouts are sixteen- to twenty-four-year-olds who have not finished high school and are not enrolled in school. The U.S. Department of Education reports that status dropout rates decreased from 1960 (27.2%) through 2002 (10.7%). In 2001 10.7% of sixteen- to twenty-four-year-olds had dropped out of high school. The Hispanic status dropout rate was considerably higher, at 27%, than that of non-Hispanic African-Americans (10.9%) or non-Hispanic whites (7.3%).

Dropout rates also fluctuate greatly according to family income. In 2000 20.7% of people ages sixteen to twenty-four from families who had the lowest incomes (bottom 25%) had dropped out of school, nearly six times the dropout rates of sixteen- to twenty-four-year-olds whose families had the highest incomes (3.5%). (See Figure 6.6.)

Status dropout rates are consistently lower for women than for men regardless of race or ethnicity. This has been the case since 1977. (See Table 6.7.) In 2001 the status dropout rate for young women ages sixteen to twenty-four was 9.3%. Males of the same age in 2001 had a status dropout rate of 12.2%.

Returning to School or Getting an Alternative Diploma (GED)

The decision to drop out of high school does not necessarily mean the end of a young person's education. Many former students return to school to get their diploma or take the test necessary to obtain an alternative credential or degree, such as a General Equivalency Diploma (GED). In 2001 648,000 GEDs were issued. Many young people who earn their GED then go on to get a college education.