About the Report Series
The Status of Women in North Carolina is a series of reports highlighting the progress and obstacles women continue to face and to encourage policy and programmatic changes that can improve opportunities for women across the state. These reports build on the Institute for Women’s Policy Research’s long-standing report series, The Status of Women in the States.
That series provided data on the status of women nationally and for all 50 states plus the District of Columbia since 1996, including a Status of Women in North Carolina report in 2013, as well as a series of briefing papers for specific geographic areas within the state.
Initially, this series consisted of four reports covering Earnings & Employment, Health & Wellness, Political Participation and Poverty & Opportunity with generous funding support from the NC Department of Transportation. The Division for Women and Youth and IWPR released an additional report in 2020 on COVID-19, and in 2025 released a report on Investing in Economic Opportunity for Women in NC.
Key Findings from the Series
- NC women earn a median income of $36,400 & an average of $8,600 less than men.
- 35% of NC women have experienced intimate partner violence and/or sexual violence.
- NC has the 10th highest rate of reported STI diagnoses.
- NC's teen pregnancy rate has decreased nearly 7% since 2014.
- While women make up 51% of NC's population, most political office holders (state & federal levels) are male.