Enrollment Data: What we know and what we’re learning.

Data about enrollment in psychology courses come from a number of sources. Some of what we know comes from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). NCES is the primary federal entity for collecting and analyzing data related to education in the United States and other nations.

Undergraduate Enrollment in Psychology

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) reports that for the most recent year of available data (2006-2007) 90,039 bachelor's degrees in Psychology were awarded. Of these bachelor's degrees, 77.4% (69,696) were awarded to women. To learn more, visit NCES online.

The APA Center for Workforce Studies (CWS) has compiled a series of reports with baccalaureate-data; particularly with respect to education and employment. To view these reports, visit the CWS Web site.

Data for students attending community colleges are less clear. Frequently, students who wish to pursue an undergraduate degree in psychology select an Associate Degree program that allows for efficient transfer to a college or university. This generally precludes a major in psychology at a community college level, therefore it is difficult to identify the number of students who attend community colleges for the express purpose of majoring in psychology. However, one thing is clear. In 2006-2007, the most recent year of available data, 2,213 Associate Degrees in psychology were awarded. Of these associate degrees, 76.5% were awarded to women. Growth in the number of bachelor's and associate's degrees awarded is continuing. From 1995-1996 through 2006-2007, the NCES data indicate an increase of 22.6% (bachelor's) and 39.8% (associate's) of degrees awarded.

High School Psychology

With respect to the number of students who take psychology in High School, there are data reporting the number of students who take the Advanced Placement (AP) exam. For example, the College Board reports that over 132,000 students took the AP Psychology exam in 2008 and approximately 150,000 students took the AP Psychology exam in 2009. Considering that just under 4,000 students took the AP Psychology exam in 1992, the first year the exam was given, this demonstrates an astonishing growth in the popularity of the subject. AP Psychology had the 7th largest exam volume of 37 AP subject exams in 2008. In 2008, there were approximately 4,400 AP Psychology Teachers. (Source: Summary Report: 2008, College Board; AP Report to the Nation.

International Baccalaureate (IB) Psychology courses are also offered. Enrollment numbers from 2009 show that 10,828 IB Psychology exams were taken worldwide, with 7,333 of these exams being taken in the US. In 2009, 502 schools worldwide had students who registered for the IB Psychology exams, with 278 U.S. schools having students register for IB Psychology exams. These numbers, however, underestimate the total number of Diploma schools teaching Psychology since it is based on those schools with registered exam candidates in Psychology. IB Psychology ranked 7th out of approximately 26 IB subject exams (in terms of volume) in the US, and is the 11th largest of all IB subject exams worldwide.(Source: IB Policy and Research Department)

In addition to students enrolled in AP and IB psychology, a general psychology course is also available at many schools. According to NCES, in 2005, the most recent year of available data, 30.53% of graduating students (approximately 818,000 students) earned credits in a psychology course during their four years in high school (Source: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, High School Transcript Study, 2005.). If you consider that approximately 3,328,000 students graduated from high school in 2009. and assume that at least 30% of these graduates took a psychology course, approximately 998,400 students graduated in 2009 having taken a psychology course.

There are also approximately 7,000 - 8,000 high school psychology teachers in the United States.

Still didn't find what you need? Contact Robin Hailstorks, PhD in the Office of Precollege and Undergraduate Education.