Reports and Statistics
Median ACT Scores of African Americans
2025 Average ACT Scores Among African American Students
STEM Workforce Facts
STEM careers offer an earnings advantage across broad education levels. According to the National Science Foundation’s 2024 report, full-time, year-round STEM workers without a bachelor’s degree earned median annual earnings of $51,925, compared with $39,957 for non-STEM workers in the same education category. Among workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher, median earnings were $89,931 in STEM occupations versus $69,968 in non-STEM occupations. These figures reflect 2021 earnings data. Read more >>
2025 ACT Scores: African American Students Tied for Lowest Average
Black/African American students in the graduating class of 2025 recorded an average ACT composite score of 15.9, tied with American Indian/Alaska Native students for the lowest average among the racial/ethnic groups reported. The national average was 19.4. These figures represent averages, not medians.
Labor Force Characteristics
As of 2021, only 34% of all employed African Americans works in the highest paying major occupational category and have the second highest unemployment rate among all races.
Income and Poverty
African Americans have the lowest real median income among all races at $46,600 as of 2020. Read more >>
Average Composite ACT Score per State
2022 State Percent of ACT-Tested High School Graduates, Average Composite Score, and Percent Meeting Benchmarks by Subject Read more >>
The Condition of STEM
Students with an interest in STEM continue to show higher levels of college readiness than ACT-tested students as a whole. Underserved learners’ (i.e. African Americans, low income, and/or first generation in college) ACT STEM Benchmark attainment lags far behind their peers.
The Condition of College & Career Readiness — 2025
The 2025 ACT National Profile Report examines the college and career readiness of the ACT-tested graduating class of 2025. Explore how students overall and specific student populations perform against ACT College Readiness Benchmarks and the STEM Benchmark, along with insights into foundational work readiness, core subject performance, and the impact of core curriculum participation.
