At a time when women surpass men by record numbers in college enrollment and completion, they also have a more positive view than men about the value higher education provides, according to a nationwide Pew Research Center survey. Half of all women who have graduated from a four-year college give the U.S. higher education system excellent or good
marks for the value it provides given the money spent by students and their families; only 37% of male graduates agree. In addition, women who have graduated from college are more likely than men to say their education helped them to grow both personally and intellectually.

Also, while a majority of Americans believe that a college education is necessary in order to get ahead in life these days, the public is somewhat more inclined to see this credential as a necessity for a woman than for a man. Some 77% of respondents say this about women, while just 68% say it about men. 1

http://pewsocialtrends.org/files/201...ed-FNL-RPT.pdf

The survey is 21 pages long. The findings are broken down into gender and race. Women value education more and the numbers show it. Other key findings:

• Women seem to see more benefit in their college education than do men. College-educated women are more likely than their male counterparts to say college was “very useful” in increasing their knowledge and helping them grow intellectually (81% vs. 67%), as well as helping them grow and mature as a person (73% vs. 64%).

• More women than men question the affordability of college. Only 14% of women who graduated from college agree that most people can afford to pay for college these days. This compares with 26% of male college graduates. Large majorities of both women and men say that college is no longer affordable for most people.

• Women who graduated from college are more likely than their male counterparts to report that their parents financed their education. Four-in-ten women say their parents paid for most of their college expenses, compared with 29% of men.3

• Public reactions to the changing gender patterns in higher education are mixed. By a ratio of 52% to 7%, Americans say the fact that more women than men are graduating from college is a good thing, rather than a bad thing, for society. However, when presented with the flip side of the story, the public’s enthusiasm disappears. Some 46% of Americans say the fact that fewer men than women are graduating from college is a bad thing, while just 12% say it is a good thing.

I applaud the women. Even more women should be encouraged to continue their education. To nourish the quest to keep learning and satisfy one's curiosity is both commendable and necessary.

There is some research that found men rely very heavily on their success in their careers and as a provider for their family to measure and determine their self esteem. http://www.joelbrookscounseling.com/...dWomen.en.html Perhaps the confluence of a terrible economy and the increasing success of women as family breadwinners has a role in how men value education?

[salukigirl]

Well yeah, when you say "fewer men are graduating" it always sounds like a bad thing. It's the phrasing of the sentence. It doesn't sound like it means the same thing as "more women are graduating".

Also, I find it odd that women got more financial assistance from parents than men. I am definitely part of that 86% of women who think college is too expensive. I get assistance from my mom in that she still pays for my medication (epilepsy meds get expensive) and cell phone. However, when I get extra money from a scholarship or whatever I try to give her a hundred bucks or whatever I can gather up. But other than that I have paid for everything in college. My brother and sister the same.

My siblings and I are first generation college students and I am the first person ever in my family to go past a bachelor's degree. I am pretty pleased with the surprising respect I get being a female in science. I was expecting the opposite (and I often get that from 'good ol boys' who are in their 60s or 70s and don't like change) but for the most part guys in my dept (and in school overall) have been very supportive of me.