Fewer and fewer young men are going to college, now represent only 42% of students at 4-year schools: poll

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College enrollment has been gradually declining over the past ten years, particularly among young men, according to Pew Research Center.

Colleges in America have represented the gateway to elite institutions and upper mobility for generations, but between expensive costs and various controversies, many appear to be second-guessing spending years in academia, especially men, and demographers are starting to notice.

"Most of the decline is due to fewer young men pursuing college," Pew reported. "About 1 million fewer young men are in college but only 0.2 million fewer young women. As a result, men make up 44% of young college students today, down from 47% in 2011, according to newly released U.S. Census Bureau data."

The study added further, "This shift is driven entirely by the falling share of men who are students at four-year colleges. Today, men represent only 42% of students ages 18 to 24 at four-year schools, down from 47% in 2011."

Students on campus at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. (Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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The decline is purportedly driven by fewer and fewer young high school graduates enrolling in college, a trend that is more salient among young men than women.

"Today, only 39% of young men who have completed high school are enrolled in college, down from 47% in 2011," the polling research firm observed. "The rate at which young female high school graduates enroll has also fallen, but not by nearly as much (from 52% to 48%)."

College students stand in their caps and gowns at graduation. (Silas Stein/picture alliance via Getty Images)

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This decline also correlates with racial identity, as the widening of this gap between men and women is most noticeable among White high school graduates, "Young White women who have finished high school are now 10 percentage points more likely to be enrolled in college than similar men. In 2011, the difference was only 4 points."

Polling from 2021 may explain some of the reasons why, as "Roughly a third (34%) of men without a bachelor’s degree say a major reason they didn’t complete college is that they just didn’t want to" and 26% of them stated they did not need further education for the careers they wanted.

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Meanwhile, women argued that the reason was that they were unable to afford college.