Women far outnumber men in law, medical and veterinary schools, study finds

Graduands during the 74th graduation ceremony at The University of Nairobi on December 11, 2025. /UoN

The last time you visited a hospital or clinic, chances are high that you were attended to by a female doctor, prepared for examination by a female nurse, or served by a female pharmacist when collecting your prescription.

This is not anecdotal observation. It is a data-backed reality, supported by an analysis of graduate and professional schools by the United States Department of Education, which shows that women are increasingly dominating enrollment and completion rates across higher education.

The figures indicate that women now account for about 60 per cent of undergraduate enrollment in the United States, having overtaken men in the pursuit of bachelor’s degrees.

Over the same period, male college enrollment has fallen by nearly four per cent since 2020.

As a result, women now outnumber men in law, medical, pharmacy, veterinary, optometry, and dental schools.

They are earning about 40 per cent more doctoral degrees than men and nearly twice as many master’s degrees.

Experts cited in an article published by the Los Angeles Times on January 20 attribute this trend to diverging attitudes towards education.

They said while women continue to view higher education as a pathway to upward mobility, many men no longer see its long-term value and are increasingly reluctant to invest time or money in college.

Instead, a growing number are opting to go straight into business or employment after high school, prioritising immediate income over academic progression.

Chevelle Newsome, president of the Council of Graduate Schools, which represents 460 universities across the United States, noted that even among men who complete undergraduate studies, many see little incentive to advance further.

Lisa Greenhill, chief organisational health officer at the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges, attributed the contrast to what she described as perceived availability of wider options to men compared with women.

“They feel like they don’t have to go to a four-year programme or a graduate programme,” she said.

While these patterns reflect a widening gender gap in American institutions of higher learning, an examination of graduation data from Kenyan universities suggests that the trend may not be uniquely American.

On Thursday, December 11, 2025, the University of Nairobi held its 74th graduation ceremony, conferring degrees and diplomas on 4,504 graduates.

Among them were 667 students from the Faculty of Health Sciences, spanning Medicine and Surgery, Dentistry, Pharmacy and Nursing.

The graduation booklet shows that the sole recipient of a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Medicine was female, as was the only PhD graduate in Nursing Sciences.

There was gender parity among the two PhD graduates in Infectious Diseases, but the lone PhD recipient in Dentistry was also female.

In the Faculty of Law, the only two PhD graduates were male. However, both Doctor of Philosophy graduates in Environmental Policy were female, as was the PhD recipient in Microbiology.

The only student awarded a PhD in Geology was also female. At master’s level, the picture was more mixed.

Male students dominated Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, accounting for all three graduates, while the lone graduate in Paediatric Dentistry was female.

The sole Master of Medicine graduate in Internal Medicine was also female.

Female students, however, outperformed their male counterparts in several science- and technology-related programmes.

They accounted for the only graduates in Information Technology Management and Climate Change Adaptation, and outnumbered men two to one in Actuarial Science. All three graduates in Meteorology were female.

While these figures do not represent a comprehensive national picture across all universities, they point to a similar gender imbalance in the pursuit of advanced graduate and professional studies within Kenya.

In the United States, the Los Angeles Times reported that during the main intake period, new female undergraduates outnumbered new male undergraduates in the University of California system by 28,301 to 22,747.

The gap was even wider in the California State University system, where women outnumbered men by more than 50,000 during the same period.

The Association of American Medical Colleges says women now make up 50 per cent of future doctors, up from 48 per cent in 2015.

The American Psychological Association reports that women outnumber men three to one in doctoral psychology programmes and nearly four to one at master’s level.

The publication noted that enrolment challenges in American institutions have been compounded by visa restrictions and cuts to federal research funding.

Citing the Institute of International Education, it said these factors have contributed to a 12 per cent decline in international graduate students.