What percentage of freshmen intend to major in an S&E field when they start college?

Since the data were first collected in 1972, a third or more of first-time freshmen at 4-year institutions have planned on majoring in S&E. The percentage of freshmen with S&E intentions shows a notable increase for both men and women beginning in 2008.

Asians are more likely than freshmen of other race/ethnicities to have plans to major in S&E when they enter undergraduate school. Hispanic freshmen are the second most likely group to have such plans. During the period 2008 to 2012, freshmen intentions to major in S&E increased in every racial/ethnic group.

• For the 35-year period from 1972 to 2007, about a third of all first-time freshmen at 4-year institutions planned to major in S&E when they started college. The proportion rose gradually to 40% in 2011 and then declined to 39% in 2012.
• Men have been more likely than women to plan an S&E major as freshmen; this is the case in every racial/ethnic group.
• Overall, the percentage of male freshmen intending to major in S&E increased from 39% in 1995 to 47% in 2011, and then declined to 46% in 2012. The pattern was similar among female freshmen, whose intentions to major in S&E increased from 27% in 1995 to 35% in 2011, followed by a decline to 34% in 2012.

• In 2012, a 53% majority of Asian first-time freshmen intended to major in S&E, followed by Hispanics (42%), whites (37%), blacks (36%) and American Indians/Alaska Natives (33%).
• Asian freshmen were the only group with a higher level of S&E intentions in 2012 (53%) than in 2011 (49%). S&E intentions were 1 percentage point lower in 2012 than in 2011 for Hispanics, whites, and American Indians/Alaska Natives. The percentage did not change for black freshmen.
• Over the period 1995–2012, the percentage of first-time freshmen expecting to major in S&E varied by 9-12 points within racial/ethnic group: a 9-point difference between the highest and lowest percentages among whites, and a 12-point difference among Asians. The highest percentage of S&E intentions was in 2012 for Asians (53%), in 2011 for Hispanics (44%) and whites (38%), in 2007 for American Indians/Alaska Natives (36%), and in 1997 for blacks (39%).