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| 2022 Tables and Figures | All Years of Tables and Figures | Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest |
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| Selected characteristic | All fields |
Agricultural and natural sciences |
Biological and biomedical sciences |
Business | Computer and information sciences |
Education | Engineering | Geosciences, atmospheric, and ocean sciences |
Health sciences |
Humanities | Mathematics and statistics |
Multi- disciplinary/ inter- disciplinary sciences |
Physical sciences |
Psychology | Social Sciences |
Visual and performing arts |
Other fields1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| Number of doctor's degrees conferred | 52,250 | 1,223 | 8,259 | 1,340 | 2,195 | 3,711 | 9,563 | 1,044 | 2,582 | 3,076 | 1,915 | 1,299 | 4,811 | 3,716 | 4,749 | 771 | 1,996 |
Sex (percent)2 |
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| Male | 53.7 | 49.2 | 47.8 | 56.4 | 76.0 | 29.9 | 73.7 | 55.8 | 31.2 | 52.6 | 72.1 | 58.7 | 67.5 | 27.0 | 49.7 | 45.3 | 42.0 |
| Female | 46.2 | 50.8 | 52.2 | 43.6 | 24.0 | 70.0 | 26.3 | 44.2 | 68.8 | 47.3 | 27.9 | 41.3 | 32.5 | 73.0 | 50.3 | 54.7 | 58.0 |
| Unknown | # | 0 | # | 0 | 0 | # | # | 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 0 | 0.1 | # | 0 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 |
Race/ethnicity (percent)3 |
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| American Indian/Alaska Native | 0.3 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 0 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.5 |
| Asian | 9.5 | 5.8 | 11.9 | 13.2 | 19.3 | 5.4 | 15.4 | 4.5 | 9.7 | 4.9 | 11.3 | 10.4 | 9.8 | 6.4 | 8.6 | 5.8 | 6.5 |
| Black | 7.7 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 19.0 | 5.1 | 17.3 | 4.1 | 2.0 | 13.9 | 4.7 | 3.3 | 7.6 | 2.8 | 7.9 | 9.8 | 3.0 | 16.8 |
| Hispanic | 9.0 | 6.3 | 9.7 | 4.7 | 4.6 | 9.6 | 8.2 | 7.2 | 7.4 | 9.6 | 7.7 | 10.1 | 8.0 | 11.7 | 10.4 | 7.5 | 8.5 |
| White | 67.4 | 77.4 | 68.1 | 55.9 | 64.0 | 61.1 | 66.4 | 79.4 | 63.2 | 73.6 | 70.5 | 65.1 | 73.5 | 66.2 | 65.2 | 77.1 | 61.0 |
| Two or more races | 3.4 | 1.7 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 2.9 | 3.4 | 3.9 | 4.0 | 3.5 | 4.1 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 3.0 |
| Other and unknown4 | 2.7 | 3.9 | 1.8 | 3.7 | 3.1 | 2.8 | 2.6 | 1.7 | 2.4 | 3.7 | 3.3 | 2.5 | 2.1 | 3.5 | 2.3 | 2.5 | 3.6 |
Citizenship (percent) |
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| U.S. citizen/permanent resident | 60.6 | 56.8 | 71.1 | 44.0 | 32.0 | 79.8 | 39.6 | 63.7 | 73.0 | 76.0 | 44.2 | 51.9 | 56.4 | 82.6 | 63.0 | 74.1 | 65.4 |
| Temporary visa holder | 33.8 | 39.0 | 25.0 | 48.1 | 60.8 | 13.4 | 55.1 | 32.2 | 20.4 | 17.8 | 51.5 | 41.9 | 39.5 | 8.3 | 31.8 | 19.1 | 27.3 |
| Unknown | 5.6 | 4.2 | 3.8 | 7.9 | 7.2 | 6.8 | 5.4 | 4.1 | 6.5 | 6.2 | 4.2 | 6.2 | 4.1 | 9.1 | 5.2 | 6.9 | 7.3 |
Median age at doctorate (years) |
31.4 |
31.7 |
30.4 |
33.9 |
31.3 |
38.8 |
30.2 |
30.7 |
34.5 |
34.6 |
29.4 |
31.6 |
29.2 |
31.2 |
33.1 |
33.9 |
35.3 |
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Percent with bachelor's degree in same field as doctorate5 |
61.7 |
49.6 |
64.3 |
36.5 |
40.9 |
25.4 |
82.3 |
53.0 |
44.5 |
73.4 |
80.1 |
12.3 |
78.6 |
72.7 |
56.2 |
69.1 |
35.9 |
Median time lapse to doctorate (years) |
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| Since bachelor's degree completion | 8.7 | 8.6 | 8.0 | 10.8 | 8.8 | 15.0 | 7.5 | 8.0 | 11.3 | 11.3 | 7.0 | 8.9 | 6.6 | 8.6 | 10.0 | 11.0 | 11.7 |
| Since starting graduate school | 7.3 | 7.3 | 6.3 | 8.8 | 7.3 | 12.0 | 6.7 | 6.8 | 8.9 | 9.8 | 6.1 | 7.6 | 5.9 | 6.9 | 8.4 | 9.3 | 9.5 |
Postdoctoral plans (percent)6 |
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| Definite postdoctoral study7 | 28.9 | 31.0 | 45.5 | 6.7 | 17.7 | 5.8 | 26.0 | 48.5 | 25.1 | 16.0 | 33.9 | 27.0 | 42.3 | 47.1 | 19.6 | 11.2 | 12.9 |
| Fellowship or research associateship | 27.4 | 30.0 | 43.0 | 6.1 | 16.8 | 5.5 | 24.9 | 48.1 | 22.3 | 15.5 | 33.2 | 25.7 | 41.6 | 40.1 | 19.1 | 10.6 | 12.5 |
| Other8 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 2.5 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 2.8 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 7.0 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.4 |
| Definite postdoctoral employment9 | 41.0 | 36.3 | 23.5 | 71.5 | 60.3 | 64.8 | 41.6 | 25.2 | 47.7 | 44.8 | 38.4 | 44.5 | 27.9 | 31.8 | 51.2 | 39.9 | 51.3 |
| Academe10 | 15.7 | 12.0 | 5.7 | 54.0 | 16.2 | 35.4 | 6.5 | 7.6 | 22.8 | 29.7 | 12.9 | 12.2 | 3.7 | 12.1 | 26.5 | 24.2 | 32.1 |
| Government | 3.2 | 5.3 | 2.0 | ‡ | 2.1 | 2.8 | 3.0 | 6.7 | 4.1 | 1.7 | 1.5 | 3.2 | 1.5 | 3.5 | 8.2 | ‡ | 5.0 |
| Industry, business | 16.8 | 16.0 | 13.8 | 11.4 | 39.7 | 5.1 | 29.8 | 8.9 | 12.4 | 3.5 | 22.1 | 25.2 | 21.2 | 9.8 | 9.9 | 5.9 | 7.7 |
| Nonprofit organization | 2.7 | 1.7 | 1.4 | ‡ | 1.5 | 3.8 | 1.5 | 1.2 | 6.9 | 5.8 | 1.1 | 2.5 | 0.9 | 3.1 | 4.7 | ‡ | 4.4 |
| Other and unknown11 | 2.5 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 1.3 | 0.8 | 17.7 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 4.2 | 0.7 | 1.4 | 0.7 | 3.2 | 2.0 | 3.2 | 2.1 |
| Seeking employment or study | 26.9 | 30.4 | 24.3 | 18.1 | 20.5 | 26.7 | 30.3 | 25.8 | 24.1 | 34.8 | 25.6 | 26.2 | 27.7 | 18.5 | 26.5 | 45.7 | 32.1 |
| Other and unknown12 | 3.1 | 2.3 | 6.4 | 3.5 | 1.5 | 2.7 | 2.0 | 0.5 | 3.1 | 4.3 | 2.1 | 2.2 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 2.6 | 3.3 | 3.7 |
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Primary work activity after doctorate (percent)13 |
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| Research and development | 44.5 | 55.9 | 58.5 | 47.4 | 67.2 | 11.3 | 65.4 | 52.8 | 29.1 | 9.6 | 51.2 | 54.5 | 66.9 | 25.3 | 44.5 | 12.0 | 24.5 |
| Teaching | 25.5 | 17.6 | 13.7 | 31.7 | 15.9 | 40.2 | 7.7 | 16.5 | 32.5 | 66.6 | 26.8 | 17.6 | 9.9 | 21.9 | 29.4 | 62.2 | 42.3 |
| Management or administration | 9.4 | 7.4 | 4.2 | 10.9 | 1.9 | 34.8 | 2.5 | 4.8 | 13.5 | 10.2 | 0.8 | 4.9 | 2.9 | 7.1 | 9.2 | 9.7 | 14.7 |
| Professional services and other | 20.6 | 19.1 | 23.6 | 9.9 | 14.9 | 13.6 | 24.4 | 26.0 | 24.9 | 13.6 | 21.2 | 23.0 | 20.2 | 45.6 | 16.9 | 16.2 | 18.5 |
Location after doctorate (percent)14 |
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| Midwest | 15.9 | 23.2 | 15.6 | 15.8 | 9.3 | 19.7 | 14.6 | 8.4 | 19.6 | 17.5 | 15.3 | 14.8 | 15.3 | 18.0 | 14.4 | 17.3 | 18.5 |
| Northeast | 20.1 | 8.6 | 26.0 | 15.3 | 20.7 | 14.9 | 16.5 | 16.2 | 19.4 | 21.5 | 21.8 | 19.7 | 22.9 | 24.4 | 18.4 | 25.0 | 17.7 |
| South | 27.4 | 32.2 | 26.4 | 31.6 | 18.2 | 41.9 | 25.3 | 27.5 | 34.7 | 30.4 | 19.9 | 22.3 | 20.0 | 29.1 | 28.0 | 23.3 | 33.1 |
| West | 25.8 | 23.6 | 25.2 | 13.6 | 41.4 | 16.8 | 33.5 | 36.0 | 18.8 | 17.4 | 24.6 | 33.4 | 30.8 | 24.8 | 19.1 | 19.6 | 18.0 |
| Outside the United States | 10.2 | 11.7 | 6.3 | 22.5 | 9.7 | 6.1 | 9.4 | 11.1 | 6.9 | 12.4 | 17.9 | 9.1 | 10.6 | 3.2 | 19.3 | 14.5 | 11.9 |
| Region unknown | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.3 | # | 0.1 | # | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.1 | # | 0.1 | # | 0.1 | # | 0.2 |
| #Rounds to zero. | |||||||||||||||||
| ‡Reporting standards not met. | |||||||||||||||||
| 1Includes other non-science and engineering fields not shown separately. | |||||||||||||||||
| 2Distribution based on respondents reporting sex data. | |||||||||||||||||
| 3Distribution based on U.S. citizens and permanent residents. | |||||||||||||||||
| 4Includes Pacific Islanders and persons whose race was not reported. | |||||||||||||||||
| 5Bachelor's degree is counted as in same field as doctorate if doctorate recipient's first or most recent bachelor's degree and doctorate are both in the same broad field category. | |||||||||||||||||
| 6Percentages are based on only those doctorate recipients who responded to questions about postgraduation plans. | |||||||||||||||||
| 7Excludes doctorate recipients who indicated plans for another full-time degree program. Percentages are based on doctorate recipients reporting other definite postgraduation plans for study. | |||||||||||||||||
| 8Includes respondents who indicated definite postgraduation study plans for traineeship, internship/clinical residency, or other study. | |||||||||||||||||
| 9Percentages are based on only those doctorate recipients who indicated definite postgraduation plans for employment and who indicated the sector of employment. | |||||||||||||||||
| 10Includes 2-year, 4-year, and foreign colleges and universities, and medical schools. | |||||||||||||||||
| 11"Other" is mainly composed of elementary and secondary schools. | |||||||||||||||||
| 12Includes doctorate recipients who indicated that they did not plan to work or study, those who indicated some other type of postgraduation plans, and those who indicated definite plans for another full-time degree program. | |||||||||||||||||
| 13Percentages are based on only those doctorate recipients who indicated definite postgraduation plans for employment and who indicated their primary work activity. | |||||||||||||||||
| 14Percentages are based on only those doctorate recipients who indicated definite postgraduation plans and type of plans. | |||||||||||||||||
| NOTE: The above classification of degrees by field differs somewhat from that in most publications by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). One major difference is that history is included under humanities rather than social sciences. Includes Ph.D., Ed.D., and comparable degrees at the doctoral level. Includes only graduates of research programs, which typically require the preparation and defense of a dissertation based on original research, or the planning and execution of an original project demonstrating substantial artistic or scholarly achievement. Excludes nonresearch professional practice doctor's degrees (e.g., M.D., D.D.S., and J.D.) that are conferred upon completion of a program providing the knowledge and skills for the recognition, credential, or license required for professional practice in such fields as health and theology. The number of doctor’s degrees in this table differs from that reported in the NCES Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), which includes both research and nonresearch degrees. Beginning in 2021, a modified version of the 2020 Classification of Instructional Programs codes was used in the survey data collection, and the new broad, major, and detailed fields were used in tables reporting only the most recent data year. Therefore, the field of doctorate data in 2021 may not be comparable to prior years. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. | |||||||||||||||||
| SOURCE: Doctorate Recipients From U.S. Universities: 2021, Survey of Earned Doctorates, National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Education, National Endowment for the Humanities, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. (This table was prepared May 2023.) | |||||||||||||||||
