STEM education reaches most U.S. high school graduates through at least one STEM course, while participation becomes more selective in advanced mathematics, science, engineering, technology, and computer science. The figures below cover high school graduates in 2019, postsecondary degrees in 2021–22, and AP participation and scores in 2024. Percentages describe the specific population and measure named by each source.
Contents
- High school STEM coursework
- Mathematics participation
- Science, engineering, and technology
- Differences by gender and race or ethnicity
- STEM degrees in 2021–22
- Advanced Placement participation
- AP performance by subject
High school STEM coursework
The National Center for Education Statistics reported that 96.6% of public and private high school graduates in 2019 took any STEM course. This broad measure shows how common STEM exposure was before students reached college. It does not mean that every graduate completed the same subjects or the same level of mathematics and science.
NCES Fast Facts 1089 also reported that 88.3% of 2019 graduates took any advanced science and engineering course. The corresponding figure for any advanced mathematics course was 89.4%. These broad categories were more common than individual advanced subjects, because each category includes multiple possible courses.
The transition from general exposure to particular courses is visible in the subject-level figures. Chemistry was taken by 75.0% of graduates, while 38.2% took physics and 35.0% took advanced biology. Advanced environmental or earth science was taken by 15.9%, and engineering by 11.8%.
Technology coursework was less universal than STEM coursework overall. In 2019, 38.8% of graduates took any technology course. Within that measure, 19.8% took computer science, 16.7% took health science and technology, and 6.9% took engineering or science technologies.
These statistics describe course-taking, not classroom quality, student achievement, later employment, or a child’s individual learning trajectory. They are useful for showing the reach of different STEM subjects in the graduating class, but each percentage should be read with its original course definition.
Mathematics participation
Mathematics participation was widespread at the advanced-course level in 2019. NCES Fast Facts 1089 reported that 89.4% of public and private high school graduates took any advanced mathematics course. Algebra II was taken by 85.0% of graduates.
Fewer graduates reached the courses listed beyond Algebra II. Precalculus or analysis was taken by 38.7%, and calculus by 15.8%. Another 26.0% took other advanced mathematics. These categories should not be added together: they describe overlapping or separately defined course groups rather than a mutually exclusive progression.
The mathematics figures show why a single STEM participation percentage can hide important differences in exposure. Almost nine in ten graduates were counted in the broad advanced-mathematics measure, while the share taking calculus was much smaller. The statistics therefore distinguish between access to advanced coursework in general and participation in a particular high-level subject.
Among the racial or ethnic groups specifically reported in the supplied NCES figures, 96.8% of Asian graduates took any advanced mathematics course in 2019. In the same year, 63.4% took precalculus or analysis and 45.6% took calculus. The figures refer to Asian graduates and should not be generalized to every student or treated as a causal explanation for course-taking patterns.
Selected 2019 mathematics measures
| Measure | Share of graduates |
|---|---|
| Any advanced mathematics course | 89.4% |
| Algebra II | 85.0% |
| Precalculus or analysis | 38.7% |
| Calculus | 15.8% |
| Other advanced mathematics | 26.0% |
Source: NCES Fast Facts 1089. The measures are reported for public and private high school graduates in 2019.
Science, engineering, and technology
NCES Fast Facts 1089 reported that 88.3% of 2019 graduates took any advanced science and engineering course. Individual science subjects had different levels of participation. Chemistry reached 75.0%, physics reached 38.2%, advanced biology reached 35.0%, and advanced environmental or earth science reached 15.9%.
Engineering was taken by 11.8% of graduates. Technology courses were taken by 38.8%, but that broad technology figure included several distinct areas. Computer science accounted for 19.8% of graduates, health science and technology for 16.7%, and engineering or science technologies for 6.9%.
The difference between the broad and subject-specific measures matters when interpreting STEM education statistics. A student may be included in the STEM or advanced science and engineering category after taking one qualifying course, while a subject-specific figure identifies a narrower experience. The numbers describe participation in course categories, not the number of courses taken or the amount of instructional time.
The 2019 course data also provide a baseline for considering later advanced study. High school participation in chemistry, physics, engineering, or computer science is not presented here as a predictor of a degree or AP result. The supplied figures support description of participation only.
Differences by gender and race or ethnicity
The NCES figures show small differences in broad STEM participation by gender in 2019. Any STEM course was taken by 97.2% of female graduates and 95.9% of male graduates. Any advanced mathematics course was taken by 91.2% of female graduates and 87.6% of male graduates. Any advanced science and engineering course was taken by 89.9% of female graduates and 86.7% of male graduates.
The pattern differs for the engineering and technology measures reported separately. Engineering was taken by 5.7% of female graduates and 17.7% of male graduates. Any technology course was taken by 36.8% of female graduates and 40.7% of male graduates.
The supplied racial or ethnic figures are more limited than the gender comparisons. NCES reported that 99.1% of Asian graduates took any STEM course in 2019. It also reported that 79.6% of American Indian or Alaska Native graduates took any advanced mathematics course. For Asian graduates, the reported shares were 63.4% for precalculus or analysis, 45.6% for calculus, 58.9% for physics, and 33.9% for computer science.
These figures cover different measures and groups, so they should not be combined into a single ranking. They also do not explain why participation differed. Course availability, student choices, school programs, preparation, and other factors are outside the supplied statistics.
STEM degrees in 2021–22
NCES Digest Table 318.45 reported 435,483 bachelor’s STEM degrees and certificates in 2021–22. Women earned 169,049 of these awards and men earned 266,434. The same table reported that STEM fields represented 16.2% of bachelor’s degrees earned by women and 15.4% of bachelor’s degrees earned by men.
The table also reported 84,855 associate’s STEM degrees and certificates in 2021–22. Women earned 24,571 and men earned 60,284. Overall, 11.0% of associate’s degrees were STEM.
The measures use two different perspectives: the number of STEM awards by gender and the share of all degrees earned by a gender that were in STEM fields. Those percentages should not be used as if they were the gender distribution of all STEM degrees. In the supplied NCES data, 19.3% of bachelor’s STEM degrees went to women, while the reported gender-specific degree shares were 16.2% for women’s bachelor’s degrees and 15.4% for men’s bachelor’s degrees in STEM fields.
Field mix also differed within bachelor’s STEM degrees. For men, engineering and engineering technologies represented 20.2% of bachelor’s STEM degrees. For women, health-related STEM fields represented 25.9%; the corresponding figure for men was 14.1%.
| Postsecondary measure, 2021–22 | Reported value |
|---|---|
| Bachelor’s STEM degrees and certificates | 435,483 |
| Women’s bachelor’s STEM awards | 169,049 |
| Men’s bachelor’s STEM awards | 266,434 |
| Associate’s STEM degrees and certificates | 84,855 |
| Women’s associate’s STEM awards | 24,571 |
| Men’s associate’s STEM awards | 60,284 |
Source: NCES Digest Table 318.45. The award counts and percentages refer to the table’s 2021–22 definitions.
Advanced Placement participation
For the class of 2024, the College Board reported that 1,239,896 students took at least one AP Exam. That was 35.7% of U.S. public high school graduates. The College Board also reported that 786,291 students in the class scored a 3 or higher on at least one AP Exam, equal to 22.6% of U.S. public high school graduates.
These figures concern AP Exams across the program, not STEM exams alone. They provide context for advanced academic participation, while the subject-level results below identify selected STEM-related AP subjects. Taking an exam and earning a score of 3 or higher are separate measures.
The College Board’s 2024 AP Score Distributions reported a 3-or-higher score rate of 80.9% for AP Calculus BC. The score rate was 67.2% for AP Computer Science A and 64.0% for AP Computer Science Principles. In science, AP Biology had a 68.3% score rate, AP Chemistry 75.6%, and AP Environmental Science 54.1%.
AP performance by subject
The 2024 subject-level score rates varied across the AP STEM subjects listed by the College Board. AP Physics 1 had a 47.3% score rate of 3 or higher, while AP Physics C: Mechanics had a 76.3% rate. The two physics figures refer to different AP courses and should not be treated as a single physics average.
| 2024 AP subject | Score rate of 3 or higher |
|---|---|
| Calculus BC | 80.9% |
| Chemistry | 75.6% |
| Physics C: Mechanics | 76.3% |
| Biology | 68.3% |
| Computer Science A | 67.2% |
| Computer Science Principles | 64.0% |
| Environmental Science | 54.1% |
| Physics 1 | 47.3% |
Source: College Board 2024 AP Score Distributions. A score rate is not the same as the share of all high school students taking that subject, and it does not measure the quality of a particular classroom or school.
Taken together, the available statistics describe STEM education at several stages: broad high school course exposure in 2019, advanced course participation by selected groups, STEM degrees and certificates in 2021–22, and AP participation and subject score rates for 2024. Because the sources use different populations, dates, and definitions, the figures are most useful when each one is read with its stated measurement period and category.