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Digest of Education Statistics
2012 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest


Table 263. Total fall enrollment in degree-granting institutions, by level of enrollment, sex, attendance status, and race/ethnicity of student: Selected years, 1976 through 2011
Level of enrollment, sex, attendance status, and race/ethnicity of student Fall enrollment (in thousands) Percentage distribution of U.S. residents
1976 1980 1990 2000 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 1976 1980 1990 2000 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23
All students, total 10,985.6 12,086.8 13,818.6 15,312.3 17,487.5 17,758.9 18,248.1 19,102.8 20,427.7 21,016.1 20,994.1 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
White 9,076.1 9,833.0 10,722.5 10,462.1 11,495.4 11,572.4 11,756.2 12,088.8 12,730.8 12,722.5 12,394.2 84.3 83.5 79.9 70.8 68.0 67.4 66.7 65.5 64.5 62.7 61.2
Total, selected races/ethnicities 1,690.8 1,948.8 2,704.7 4,321.5 5,407.2 5,590.6 5,867.4 6,353.5 7,012.1 7,584.0 7,859.5 15.7 16.5 20.1 29.2 32.0 32.6 33.3 34.5 35.5 37.3 38.8
Black 1,033.0 1,106.8 1,247.0 1,730.3 2,214.6 2,279.6 2,383.4 2,584.5 2,919.8 3,038.8 3,067.9 9.6 9.4 9.3 11.7 13.1 13.3 13.5 14.0 14.8 15.0 15.1
Hispanic 383.8 471.7 782.4 1,461.8 1,882.0 1,964.3 2,076.2 2,272.9 2,546.7 2,741.4 2,890.1 3.6 4.0 5.8 9.9 11.1 11.4 11.8 12.3 12.9 13.5 14.3
Asian/Pacific Islander 197.9 286.4 572.4 978.2 1,134.4 1,165.5 1,217.9 1,302.8 1,337.7 1,282.2 1,282.5 1.8 2.4 4.3 6.6 6.7 6.8 6.9 7.1 6.8 6.3 6.3
Asian 1,218.1 1,216.6 6.0 6.0
Pacific Islander 64.0 65.9 0.3 0.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 76.1 83.9 102.8 151.2 176.3 181.1 190.0 193.3 207.9 196.4 186.1 0.7 0.7 0.8 1.0 1.0 1.1 1.1 1.0 1.1 1.0 0.9
Two or more races 325.3 432.9 1.6 2.1
Nonresident alien 218.7 305.0 391.5 528.7 584.8 595.9 624.5 660.6 684.8 709.6 740.5
                                             
Male 5,794.4 5,868.1 6,283.9 6,721.8 7,455.9 7,574.8 7,815.9 8,188.9 8,769.5 9,044.8 9,026.5 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
White 4,813.7 4,772.9 4,861.0 4,634.6 5,007.2 5,046.2 5,146.1 5,302.9 5,594.4 5,606.8 5,453.8 85.3 84.4 80.5 72.1 70.1 69.5 68.8 67.7 66.6 64.7 63.2
Total, selected races/ethnicities 826.6 884.4 1,176.6 1,789.8 2,139.2 2,212.6 2,336.6 2,532.8 2,808.4 3,057.6 3,173.6 14.7 15.6 19.5 27.9 29.9 30.5 31.2 32.3 33.4 35.3 36.8
Black 469.9 463.7 484.7 635.3 774.1 795.4 838.1 911.8 1,037.1 1,089.1 1,103.5 8.3 8.2 8.0 9.9 10.8 11.0 11.2 11.6 12.3 12.6 12.8
Hispanic 209.7 231.6 353.9 627.1 774.6 810.0 861.6 946.7 1,066.3 1,154.6 1,214.2 3.7 4.1 5.9 9.8 10.8 11.2 11.5 12.1 12.7 13.3 14.1
Asian/Pacific Islander 108.4 151.3 294.9 465.9 522.0 536.0 562.5 597.4 621.5 600.8 602.4 1.9 2.7 4.9 7.3 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.4 6.9 7.0
Asian 572.3 573.4 6.6 6.6
Pacific Islander 28.6 29.0 0.3 0.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 38.5 37.8 43.1 61.4 68.4 71.2 74.4 76.9 83.4 78.8 73.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.9
Two or more races 134.3 179.8 1.6 2.1
Nonresident alien 154.1 210.8 246.3 297.3 309.5 316.1 333.2 353.3 366.7 380.3 399.1
                                             
Female 5,191.2 6,218.7 7,534.7 8,590.5 10,031.6 10,184.1 10,432.2 10,913.9 11,658.2 11,971.3 11,967.6 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
White 4,262.4 5,060.1 5,861.5 5,827.5 6,488.2 6,526.2 6,610.1 6,785.9 7,136.4 7,115.7 6,940.3 83.1 82.6 79.3 69.7 66.5 65.9 65.2 64.0 62.9 61.1 59.7
Total, selected races/ethnicities 864.2 1,064.4 1,528.1 2,531.7 3,268.0 3,378.0 3,530.9 3,820.7 4,203.7 4,526.4 4,685.9 16.9 17.4 20.7 30.3 33.5 34.1 34.8 36.0 37.1 38.9 40.3
Black 563.1 643.0 762.3 1,095.0 1,440.4 1,484.2 1,545.3 1,672.7 1,882.7 1,949.7 1,964.5 11.0 10.5 10.3 13.1 14.8 15.0 15.2 15.8 16.6 16.7 16.9
Hispanic 174.1 240.1 428.5 834.7 1,107.3 1,154.3 1,214.5 1,326.1 1,480.4 1,586.9 1,676.0 3.4 3.9 5.8 10.0 11.4 11.7 12.0 12.5 13.1 13.6 14.4
Asian/Pacific Islander 89.4 135.2 277.5 512.3 612.4 629.5 655.4 705.4 716.1 681.3 680.1 1.7 2.2 3.8 6.1 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.7 6.3 5.9 5.8
Asian 645.9 643.2 5.5 5.5
Pacific Islander 35.5 36.9 0.3 0.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 37.6 46.1 59.7 89.7 107.9 110.0 115.6 116.4 124.5 117.6 112.4 0.7 0.8 0.8 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.0 1.0
Two or more races 191.0 253.1 1.6 2.2
Nonresident alien 64.6 94.2 145.2 231.4 275.3 279.8 291.2 307.3 318.1 329.2 341.4
                                             
Full-time 6,703.6 7,088.9 7,821.0 9,009.6 10,797.0 10,957.3 11,269.9 11,747.7 12,722.8 13,082.3 13,001.5 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
White 5,512.6 5,717.0 6,016.5 6,231.1 7,220.5 7,267.3 7,394.2 7,593.5 8,078.8 8,051.1 7,781.2 84.2 83.4 79.9 72.5 69.8 69.3 68.6 67.6 66.3 64.3 62.7
Total, selected races/ethnicities 1,030.9 1,137.5 1,514.9 2,368.5 3,117.1 3,221.9 3,382.0 3,631.9 4,101.7 4,465.1 4,622.3 15.8 16.6 20.1 27.5 30.2 30.7 31.4 32.4 33.7 35.7 37.3
Black 659.2 685.6 718.3 982.6 1,321.7 1,354.8 1,416.1 1,530.7 1,763.7 1,809.3 1,807.9 10.1 10.0 9.5 11.4 12.8 12.9 13.1 13.6 14.5 14.5 14.6
Hispanic 211.1 247.0 394.7 710.3 979.7 1,023.8 1,082.9 1,177.2 1,362.4 1,499.7 1,592.3 3.2 3.6 5.2 8.3 9.5 9.8 10.0 10.5 11.2 12.0 12.8
Asian/Pacific Islander 117.7 162.0 347.4 591.2 710.1 735.4 770.0 808.9 848.6 821.0 821.7 1.8 2.4 4.6 6.9 6.9 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.0 6.6 6.6
Asian 783.3 782.6 6.3 6.3
Pacific Islander 37.7 39.1 0.3 0.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 43.0 43.0 54.4 84.4 105.6 107.9 113.0 115.1 127.0 118.2 110.7 0.7 0.6 0.7 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.9
Two or more races 216.9 289.7 1.7 2.3
Nonresident alien 160.0 234.4 289.6 410.0 459.4 468.0 493.7 522.3 542.3 566.1 598.0
                                             
Part-time 4,282.1 4,997.9 5,997.7 6,302.7 6,690.5 6,801.6 6,978.2 7,355.1 7,704.9 7,933.9 7,992.7 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
White 3,563.5 4,116.0 4,706.0 4,231.0 4,274.9 4,305.1 4,362.1 4,495.3 4,651.9 4,671.5 4,613.0 84.4 83.5 79.8 68.4 65.1 64.5 63.7 62.3 61.5 60.0 58.8
Total, selected races/ethnicities 659.9 811.3 1,189.8 1,953.0 2,290.1 2,368.6 2,485.4 2,721.5 2,910.4 3,118.9 3,237.2 15.6 16.5 20.2 31.6 34.9 35.5 36.3 37.7 38.5 40.0 41.2
Black 373.8 421.2 528.7 747.7 892.9 924.8 967.2 1,053.7 1,156.2 1,229.5 1,260.1 8.9 8.5 9.0 12.1 13.6 13.9 14.1 14.6 15.3 15.8 16.1
Hispanic 172.7 224.8 387.7 751.5 902.2 940.5 993.2 1,095.7 1,184.3 1,241.8 1,297.8 4.1 4.6 6.6 12.2 13.7 14.1 14.5 15.2 15.7 15.9 16.5
Asian/Pacific Islander 80.2 124.4 225.1 387.1 424.3 430.1 447.9 493.9 489.1 461.2 460.8 1.9 2.5 3.8 6.3 6.5 6.4 6.5 6.8 6.5 5.9 5.9
Asian 434.9 434.0 5.6 5.5
Pacific Islander 26.3 26.8 0.3 0.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 33.1 40.9 48.4 66.8 70.7 73.2 77.0 78.2 80.9 78.2 75.4 0.8 0.8 0.8 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.0 1.0
Two or more races 108.4 143.2 1.4 1.8
Nonresident alien 58.7 70.6 101.8 118.7 125.5 127.8 130.8 138.3 142.6 143.5 142.5
                                             
Undergraduate, total 9,419.0 10,469.1 11,959.1 13,155.4 14,964.0 15,184.3 15,603.8 16,365.7 17,565.3 18,078.7 18,063.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
White 7,740.5 8,480.7 9,272.6 8,983.5 9,828.6 9,885.4 10,046.6 10,339.2 10,915.3 10,897.7 10,611.6 83.4 82.7 79.0 69.8 67.1 66.5 65.8 64.6 63.5 61.6 60.2
Total, selected races/ethnicities 1,535.3 1,778.5 2,467.7 3,884.0 4,820.7 4,977.9 5,221.9 5,666.2 6,271.6 6,780.7 7,029.1 16.6 17.3 21.0 30.2 32.9 33.5 34.2 35.4 36.5 38.4 39.8
Black 943.4 1,018.8 1,147.2 1,548.9 1,955.4 2,005.7 2,092.6 2,269.3 2,577.4 2,676.5 2,698.9 10.2 9.9 9.8 12.0 13.3 13.5 13.7 14.2 15.0 15.1 15.3
Hispanic 352.9 433.1 724.6 1,351.0 1,733.6 1,810.1 1,915.9 2,103.5 2,362.5 2,543.6 2,685.1 3.8 4.2 6.2 10.5 11.8 12.2 12.5 13.1 13.7 14.4 15.2
Asian/Pacific Islander 169.3 248.7 500.5 845.5 971.4 997.9 1,042.1 1,117.9 1,142.3 1,087.9 1,085.1 1.8 2.4 4.3 6.6 6.6 6.7 6.8 7.0 6.6 6.2 6.2
Asian 1,030.3 1,025.8 5.8 5.8
Pacific Islander 57.6 59.3 0.3 0.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 69.7 77.9 95.5 138.5 160.4 164.2 171.3 175.6 189.4 179.3 169.9 0.8 0.8 0.8 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.0 1.0
Two or more races 293.5 390.2 1.7 2.2
Nonresident alien 143.2 209.9 218.7 288.0 314.7 321.0 335.3 360.3 378.4 400.3 422.3
                                             
Male 4,896.8 4,997.4 5,379.8 5,778.3 6,408.9 6,513.8 6,727.6 7,066.6 7,595.5 7,835.2 7,817.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
White 4,052.2 4,054.9 4,184.4 4,010.1 4,330.4 4,364.6 4,455.9 4,598.6 4,860.2 4,861.9 4,722.9 84.4 83.5 79.6 71.3 69.2 68.6 67.9 66.8 65.6 63.7 62.1
Total, selected races/ethnicities 748.2 802.7 1,069.3 1,618.0 1,926.6 1,993.3 2,107.5 2,290.3 2,546.2 2,771.0 2,876.5 15.6 16.5 20.4 28.7 30.8 31.4 32.1 33.2 34.4 36.3 37.9
Black 430.7 428.2 448.0 577.0 697.5 715.7 754.1 821.3 938.3 982.9 994.9 9.0 8.8 8.5 10.3 11.1 11.3 11.5 11.9 12.7 12.9 13.1
Hispanic 191.7 211.2 326.9 582.6 718.5 752.0 802.0 884.0 997.3 1,079.9 1,136.2 4.0 4.3 6.2 10.4 11.5 11.8 12.2 12.8 13.5 14.1 15.0
Asian/Pacific Islander 91.1 128.5 254.5 401.9 448.1 460.6 483.6 514.6 534.0 513.6 513.9 1.9 2.6 4.8 7.1 7.2 7.2 7.4 7.5 7.2 6.7 6.8
Asian 487.6 487.4 6.4 6.4
Pacific Islander 26.0 26.4 0.3 0.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 34.8 34.8 39.9 56.4 62.5 65.0 67.8 70.3 76.5 72.4 67.8 0.7 0.7 0.8 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.9
Two or more races 122.3 163.6 1.6 2.2
Nonresident alien 96.4 139.8 126.1 150.2 151.8 155.9 164.2 177.7 189.1 202.2 217.6
                                             
Female 4,522.1 5,471.7 6,579.3 7,377.1 8,555.1 8,670.5 8,876.2 9,299.1 9,969.8 10,243.5 10,246.1 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
White 3,688.3 4,425.8 5,088.2 4,973.3 5,498.2 5,520.9 5,590.6 5,740.6 6,055.0 6,035.7 5,888.6 82.4 81.9 78.4 68.7 65.5 64.9 64.2 63.0 61.9 60.1 58.6
Total, selected races/ethnicities 787.0 975.8 1,398.5 2,266.0 2,894.0 2,984.5 3,114.4 3,375.9 3,725.4 4,009.7 4,152.7 17.6 18.1 21.6 31.3 34.5 35.1 35.8 37.0 38.1 39.9 41.4
Black 512.7 590.6 699.2 971.9 1,257.8 1,290.0 1,338.5 1,448.0 1,639.1 1,693.6 1,703.9 11.5 10.9 10.8 13.4 15.0 15.2 15.4 15.9 16.8 16.9 17.0
Hispanic 161.2 221.8 397.6 768.4 1,015.0 1,058.1 1,113.9 1,219.5 1,365.2 1,463.7 1,548.8 3.6 4.1 6.1 10.6 12.1 12.4 12.8 13.4 14.0 14.6 15.4
Asian/Pacific Islander 78.2 120.2 246.0 443.6 523.2 537.3 558.5 603.2 608.3 574.3 571.2 1.7 2.2 3.8 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.6 6.2 5.7 5.7
Asian 542.7 538.3 5.4 5.4
Pacific Islander 31.6 32.9 0.3 0.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 34.9 43.1 55.5 82.1 98.0 99.2 103.6 105.2 112.9 106.9 102.1 0.8 0.8 0.9 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.1 1.0
Two or more races 171.2 226.6 1.7 2.3
Nonresident alien 46.8 70.1 92.6 137.8 162.9 165.2 171.2 182.6 189.4 198.1 204.7
                                             
Postbaccalaureate, total 1,566.6 1,617.7 1,859.5 2,156.9 2,523.5 2,574.6 2,644.4 2,737.1 2,862.4 2,937.5 2,931.1 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
White 1,335.6 1,352.4 1,449.8 1,478.6 1,666.8 1,687.0 1,709.7 1,749.6 1,815.5 1,824.9 1,782.6 89.6 88.8 86.0 77.2 74.0 73.4 72.6 71.8 71.0 69.4 68.2
Total, selected races/ethnicities 155.5 170.3 237.0 437.5 586.6 612.7 645.5 687.2 740.5 803.3 830.4 10.4 11.2 14.0 22.8 26.0 26.6 27.4 28.2 29.0 30.6 31.8
Black 89.7 87.9 99.8 181.4 259.2 273.9 290.8 315.2 342.4 362.3 369.1 6.0 5.8 5.9 9.5 11.5 11.9 12.3 12.9 13.4 13.8 14.1
Hispanic 30.9 38.6 57.9 110.8 148.4 154.2 160.3 169.4 184.2 197.9 205.0 2.1 2.5 3.4 5.8 6.6 6.7 6.8 7.0 7.2 7.5 7.8
Asian/Pacific Islander 28.6 37.7 72.0 132.7 163.0 167.6 175.8 184.9 195.4 194.3 197.4 1.9 2.5 4.3 6.9 7.2 7.3 7.5 7.6 7.6 7.4 7.6
Asian 187.8 190.8 7.1 7.3
Pacific Islander 6.5 6.6 0.2 0.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 6.4 6.0 7.3 12.6 15.9 17.0 18.7 17.7 18.5 17.1 16.1 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.6
Two or more races   31.8 42.7 1.2 1.6
Nonresident alien 75.5 95.1 172.7 240.7 270.1 274.8 289.1 300.3 306.4 309.3 318.1
                                             
Male 897.6 870.7 904.2 943.5 1,047.1 1,061.1 1,088.3 1,122.3 1,174.0 1,209.6 1,209.5 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
White 761.6 718.1 676.6 624.5 676.8 681.6 690.2 704.3 734.2 744.9 730.9 90.7 89.8 86.3 78.4 76.1 75.7 75.1 74.4 73.7 72.2 71.1
Total, selected races/ethnicities 78.4 81.7 107.4 171.9 212.5 219.2 229.1 242.5 262.2 286.6 297.1 9.3 10.2 13.7 21.6 23.9 24.3 24.9 25.6 26.3 27.8 28.9
Black 39.2 35.5 36.7 58.3 76.6 79.7 84.0 90.5 98.8 106.2 108.5 4.7 4.4 4.7 7.3 8.6 8.8 9.1 9.6 9.9 10.3 10.6
Hispanic 18.1 20.4 27.0 44.5 56.1 57.9 59.6 62.7 69.0 74.7 77.9 2.2 2.5 3.4 5.6 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.9 7.2 7.6
Asian/Pacific Islander 17.4 22.8 40.4 64.0 73.9 75.4 78.9 82.7 87.5 87.2 88.6 2.1 2.8 5.2 8.0 8.3 8.4 8.6 8.7 8.8 8.5 8.6
Asian 84.7 86.0 8.2 8.4
Pacific Islander 2.5 2.6 0.2 0.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 3.7 3.0 3.2 5.0 5.9 6.2 6.6 6.5 6.9 6.4 5.9 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.6 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.6
Two or more races 12.0 16.2 1.2 1.6
Nonresident alien 57.7 71.0 120.2 147.1 157.7 160.2 169.1 175.5 177.7 178.1 181.5
                                             
Female 669.1 747.0 955.4 1,213.4 1,476.5 1,513.5 1,556.0 1,614.8 1,688.4 1,727.8 1,721.6 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
White 574.1 634.3 773.2 854.1 990.0 1,005.4 1,019.5 1,045.3 1,081.4 1,080.0 1,051.7 88.1 87.7 85.6 76.3 72.6 71.9 71.0 70.2 69.3 67.6 66.4
Total, selected races/ethnicities 77.2 88.6 129.6 265.7 374.0 393.5 416.5 444.8 478.3 516.7 533.3 11.9 12.3 14.4 23.7 27.4 28.1 29.0 29.8 30.7 32.4 33.6
Black 50.5 52.4 63.1 123.1 182.6 194.2 206.8 224.7 243.6 256.0 260.6 7.7 7.2 7.0 11.0 13.4 13.9 14.4 15.1 15.6 16.0 16.4
Hispanic 12.8 18.3 30.9 66.3 92.3 96.3 100.7 106.7 115.2 123.2 127.1 2.0 2.5 3.4 5.9 6.8 6.9 7.0 7.2 7.4 7.7 8.0
Asian/Pacific Islander 11.2 15.0 31.5 68.7 89.1 92.2 97.0 102.2 107.9 107.1 108.9 1.7 2.1 3.5 6.1 6.5 6.6 6.8 6.9 6.9 6.7 6.9
Asian 103.1 104.8 6.5 6.6
Pacific Islander 3.9 4.0 0.2 0.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 2.7 3.0 4.1 7.6 10.0 10.8 12.1 11.2 11.6 10.7 10.3 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.6
Two or more races 19.7 26.5 1.2 1.7
Nonresident alien 17.8 24.1 52.5 93.6 112.4 114.6 120.1 124.8 128.7 131.1 136.6
—Not available.
†Not applicable.
NOTE: Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Because of underreporting and nonreporting of racial/ethnic data, some figures are slightly lower than corresponding data in other tables. Data through 1990 are for institutions of higher education, while later data are for degree-granting institutions. Degree-granting institutions grant associate’s or higher degrees and participate in Title IV federal financial aid programs. The degree-granting classification is very similar to the earlier higher education classification, but it includes more 2-year colleges and excludes a few higher education institutions that did not grant degrees. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Higher Education General Information Survey (HEGIS), "Fall Enrollment in Colleges and Universities" surveys, 1976 and 1980; Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), "Fall Enrollment Survey" (IPEDS-EF:90); and IPEDS Spring 2001 through Spring 2012, Enrollment component. (This table was prepared November 2012.)

2012 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest