Higher Ed Utah

(Catherine Groux, US News) – According to the U.S. Census Bureau, about 37% of employed women ages 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 35% of their male counterparts. Despite this statistic, less than half of the college students in Utah County, Utah are female, the Daily Herald reports.

For this reason, Susan Madsen, a management professor at Utah Valley University and a member of the Utah Women’s College Task Force, has partnered with other educators, policymakers, community leaders and students to encourage more women to pursue a degree. Currently, Madsen said the state has the largest gap between the percentages of males and females graduating from college.

A Utah task force is trying to convince more women to go to college. “A lot of young women in Utah don’t really understand the broad value of what a higher education can do for them,” Madsen told the Herald. “They understand it is connected to getting a job, but education is important for so many other reasons.”

To show more women the benefits of going to college, Madsen and her task force recommend launching a social media campaign, founding women-focused mentor initiatives and creating flexible attendance programs. More…