Total college enrollment in New York has reached 907,291 students, marking a decrease of 33,481 students over the past decade. During this period, the gender gap in higher education continued to widen: the gender ratio decreased from 78.79 to 74.81 male students per 100 female students, reflecting a strong relative growth in female college enrollment.
For the academic year 2024-2025, New York Colleges enrollment is approximately 42.80% male (388,278 males) and 57.20% female (519,013 females).
From 2015 to 2025, total enrollment at New York Colleges decreased by 33,481 students, from 940,772 to 907,291. Male enrollment decreased by 26,292 students, while female enrollment decreased by 7,189 students. The number of male students per 100 female students decreased, changing from 78.79 to 74.81.
Over this period, male enrollment fluctuated year over year, while female enrollment fluctuated.
| Year | Total Students | Male Students | Female Students | Males per 100 Female Students |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-15 | 940,772 | 414,570 (44.07%) | 526,202 (55.93%) | 78.79 |
| 2015-16 | 941,434 | 414,264 (44.00%) | 527,170 (56.00%) | 78.58 |
| 2016-17 | 945,357 | 415,084 (43.91%) | 530,273 (56.09%) | 78.28 |
| 2017-18 | 938,739 | 413,408 (44.04%) | 525,331 (55.96%) | 78.69 |
| 2018-19 | 947,839 | 414,428 (43.72%) | 533,411 (56.28%) | 77.69 |
| 2019-20 | 946,115 | 410,050 (43.34%) | 536,065 (56.66%) | 76.49 |
| 2020-21 | 925,904 | 395,789 (42.75%) | 530,115 (57.25%) | 74.66 |
| 2021-22 | 915,548 | 388,728 (42.46%) | 526,820 (57.54%) | 73.79 |
| 2022-23 | 894,259 | 380,212 (42.52%) | 514,047 (57.48%) | 73.96 |
| 2023-24 | 896,679 | 384,482 (42.88%) | 512,197 (57.12%) | 75.07 |
| 2024-25 | 907,291 | 388,278 (42.80%) | 519,013 (57.20%) | 74.81 |
| Average | 1,019,994 | 441,929 (43.33%) | 578,064 (56.67%) | 76.45 |
The following is an analysis of the male per female ratio (male students per 100 female students) at New York Colleges by school control.
Comparing school types, Public schools had the highest latest ratio (77.72), while Private for-profit schools had the lowest (43.27), a gap of 34.45 points. Private for-profit schools saw the largest shift over the period (-13.20 points).
Bottom line: Male students' share of total enrollment tends tofall 1.0 points from 44.7% to 43.7% at Public colleges and stay flat from 43.4% to 42.6% at Private nonprofit colleges. Female students' share of total enrollment tends to rise 1.0 points from 55.3% to 56.3% at Public colleges, stay flat from 56.6% to 57.4% at Private nonprofit colleges over the period.
| Year | Public | Private nonprofit | Private for-profit | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | Female | Ratio | Male | Female | Ratio | Male | Female | Ratio | |
| 2014-15 | 180,393 | 222,826 | 80.96 | 229,464 | 299,754 | 76.55 | 10,683 | 18,920 | 56.46 |
| 2015-16 | 179,716 | 222,292 | 80.85 | 230,293 | 301,255 | 76.44 | 10,374 | 18,408 | 56.36 |
| 2016-17 | 179,933 | 222,402 | 80.90 | 230,786 | 303,822 | 75.96 | 9,983 | 17,593 | 56.74 |
| 2017-18 | 181,928 | 224,509 | 81.03 | 228,674 | 299,552 | 76.34 | 9,168 | 17,075 | 53.69 |
| 2018-19 | 182,520 | 227,019 | 80.40 | 226,893 | 299,479 | 75.76 | 8,790 | 16,888 | 52.05 |
| 2019-20 | 180,311 | 227,442 | 79.28 | 224,527 | 299,116 | 75.06 | 8,358 | 16,696 | 50.06 |
| 2020-21 | 174,972 | 228,917 | 76.43 | 215,254 | 288,926 | 74.50 | 6,887 | 15,157 | 45.44 |
| 2021-22 | 165,653 | 218,936 | 75.66 | 217,109 | 294,666 | 73.68 | 6,906 | 15,135 | 45.63 |
| 2022-23 | 159,025 | 207,773 | 76.54 | 215,662 | 293,614 | 73.45 | 5,525 | 12,660 | 43.64 |
| 2023-24 | 162,671 | 207,615 | 78.35 | 215,969 | 291,414 | 74.11 | 5,842 | 13,168 | 44.37 |
| 2024-25 | 165,658 | 213,142 | 77.72 | 216,746 | 292,295 | 74.15 | 5,874 | 13,576 | 43.27 |
The following is an analysis of the male per female ratio (male students per 100 female students) at New York Colleges by student level.
| Year | Undergraduate | Graduate | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-15 | 81.84 | 69.93 | 11.91 |
| 2015-16 | 81.59 | 69.94 | 11.65 |
| 2016-17 | 81.64 | 68.84 | 12.80 |
| 2017-18 | 82.37 | 68.63 | 13.74 |
| 2018-19 | 81.80 | 66.81 | 14.99 |
| 2019-20 | 80.75 | 65.46 | 15.29 |
| 2020-21 | 79.10 | 63.35 | 15.75 |
| 2021-22 | 78.22 | 63.11 | 15.11 |
| 2022-23 | 78.69 | 62.86 | 15.83 |
| 2023-24 | 80.05 | 63.34 | 16.71 |
| 2024-25 | 79.55 | 63.61 | 15.94 |
| Average | 80.51 | 65.99 | 14.52 |
The following is an analysis of the male per female ratio (male students per 100 female students) at New York Colleges by enrollment status.
Overall, the male per female ratio for full-time students is 81.11 and for part-time students is 62.76 males per 100 female students.
| Year | Full-time | Part-time | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-15 | 84.25 | 64.49 | 19.76 |
| 2015-16 | 84.04 | 64.14 | 19.90 |
| 2016-17 | 83.32 | 64.71 | 18.61 |
| 2017-18 | 83.35 | 65.35 | 18.00 |
| 2018-19 | 82.02 | 64.94 | 17.08 |
| 2019-20 | 81.14 | 62.56 | 18.58 |
| 2020-21 | 79.06 | 61.71 | 17.35 |
| 2021-22 | 78.29 | 60.03 | 18.26 |
| 2022-23 | 78.13 | 60.80 | 17.33 |
| 2023-24 | 79.43 | 61.21 | 18.22 |
| 2024-25 | 79.23 | 60.45 | 18.78 |
| Average | 81.11 | 62.76 | 18.35 |