Almost 40% of Brown University students identify as LGBT — more than double its 2010 numbers. Bisexuality increased by 232%

Brown University's student populous who identify as LGBT has more than doubled between 2010 and 2023, more than five times the national rate.

About 38% of the student body says they are not straight, while in 2010 that number was 14%, according to a poll from the university's newspaper the Brown Daily Herald.

The national average according to Gallup's latest polling was 7.2%, meaning Brown is more than five times the national average. Similarly however, the national numbers have also doubled over a similar time period, from 2012-2022.

The Ivy League school's numbers for homosexuality have jumped 26% over the 13-year span, bisexuality increased by 232%, while all the other categories went up by a staggering 793%.

While the overall share of those who have identified as LGBT has increased dramatically, the subcategories have changed drastically over the latter years as they've been introduced.

Bisexuality has increased and represents about 53% of those who aren't straight (which is consistent with national figures), up from 41% in 2012. However, homosexuality has plummeted from over 46% of the share to less than 23% in favor of more obscure identities. Not until Spring 2022, when students were given the options, did the other identities step into the limelight.

For example, "Questioning/Unsure" represents 17% of the LGBT populous after just over a year on the ballot. "Queer" comes in at 14%, "pansexual" at 7%, and 4% for "asexual."

However, this data appears to have some presuppositions that can easily be disputed. Pansexuality, which according to WebMD means an "attraction to people regardless of their gender," assumes one agrees that there are more than two genders. If that basic fact is not agreed upon, then "pansexual" simply means "bisexual," as well.

Similarly with asexuality, as it is a lack of sexual attraction to anyone, it is unclear how that can be considered as "LGBT."

It was not stated how many students were asked for the poll, however in fall 2022, Brown's undergraduate enrollment was 7,222 students, with 3,515 in its graduate and medical programs, according to the New York Post.

The paper interviewed a student from the 2025 graduating class who attempted to explain the vast overrepresentation of the categories at the school compared to the national levels.

“Queer people haven’t been able to be open in their identifications for that long,” said Josephine Kovecses. “So it’s exciting that the numbers are growing and that queer people are able to be open in particular at Brown.”

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