Sociology
Childlessness and the Redefinition of the Life Course Among Educated Women
Quick fact
In many high-income countries, about one in five women with tertiary education remains childless by age 45, nearly double the rate among women with only lower education, a reversal of the historical pattern where it was the least educated who had no children.
Why this is interesting
Think of a typical timeline: study, get a job, find a partner, have children. For highly educated women, this once-standard script is being rewritten—often without the last chapter. Why is the most capable generation of women the one most likely to remain childless?