For as long as there have been movies, music and magazines, there has been the single gal.

Successful black women search for Mr. Right.

Over the years, she has gone from being a punchline to a glamorous, independent icon. Artists like Beyonce Knowles champion “Single Ladies,” and movies like “Something New” make the case for successful, single women maintaining high standards.

But in reality, one group of women has found it harder to leverage professional success into the model personal life.

Over the past few decades, black women in America have made historic strides academically and professionally. According to the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, at least 60 percent of black students who get awarded college degrees are women. Black women make up 71 percent of black graduate students.

But the statistics point to another issue: Many of the women are single.

According to a recent Yale study, 42 percent of African-American women have yet to be married, compared to only 23 percent of white women. There’s also a gap in numbers. The 2000 U.S. Census counted 1.8 million more African-American women than black men.

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