Effects of higher education expansion on gender parity: a 65-year trajectory in Taiwan

Abstract

This study explores gender parity on the basis of distinctive expansion stages in the higher education system of Taiwan. Gender parity is one of the key components used to determine equal opportunities for accessing higher education. Therefore, this study evaluated gender parity and explored the potential gaps at the undergraduate, master and doctoral levels by using a quantitative longitudinal method to determine the effects of the system expansion. Student enrollment data from 1950 to 2014 were collected from the Ministry of Education in Taiwan and transformed by Becker’s coefficient of discrimination (D) to interpret the significance of the gender parity at various development stages in the system. In addition, this study applied an ARIMA (Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average) model to predict the D for the next decade. Reviewing the D trend from 1950 to 2014, this study found that higher education expansion has played a crucial role in promoting gender parity. The results of the ARIMA model reveal that the numbers of male and female students studying in undergraduate programs will become more equal in the next decade. Although male students are still favored for enrollment at the master and doctoral levels, the disparity is declining according to the results of this study. The findings in this study can be used to justify a higher education expansion policy based on the function of gender parity.