Generations: The Real Differences Between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers, and Silents—and What They Mean for America's Future

by Jean M. Twenge

Perceived vs. actual gender discrimination in getting a college education is even easier to quantify. The number of teen girls who believed that women were discriminated against in getting a college education doubled between 2012 and 2019. Yet in 2019, the majority (6 out of 10) of college degrees went to women, and 4 out of 10 to men, which is the opposite of what you’d expect if gender discrimination were occurring. Women have earned the majority of four-year degrees since 1982, and the percentage of degrees going to women has steadily increased since. Yet as more and more women were walking across the stage getting their bachelor’s degrees, more and more teen girls believed that the cards were stacked against them in getting a college education (see Figure 6.58