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Digest of Education Statistics
1998 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest

Table 251. -  Master's degrees conferred by institutions of higher education, by discipline division: 1970-71 to 1995-96 
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            Discipline division                 |1970-71 |1975-76 |1980-81 |1983-84 |1984-85 |1985-86 |1986-87 |1987-88 |1988-89 |1989-90 |1990-91 |1991-92 |1992-93 |1993-94 |1994-95 |1995-96
________________________________________________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________
                   1                            |   2    |   3    |   4    |   5    |   6    |   7    |   8    |   9    |   10   |   11   |   12   |   13   |   14   |   15   |   16   |   17
________________________________________________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________
     Total .....................................|230,509 |311,771 |295,739 |284,263 |286,251 |288,567 |289,349 |299,317 |310,621 |324,301 |337,168 |352,838 |369,585 |387,070 |397,629 |406,301
                                                |________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________
Agriculture and natural resources ..............|  2,457 |  3,340 |  4,003 |  4,178 |  3,928 |  3,801 |  3,522 |  3,479 |  3,245 |  3,382 |  3,295 |  3,735 |  3,965 |  4,119 |  4,252 |  4,569
Architecture and related programs ..............|  1,705 |  3,215 |  3,153 |  3,223 |  3,275 |  3,260 |  3,163 |  3,159 |  3,383 |  3,499 |  3,490 |  3,640 |  3,808 |  3,943 |  3,923 |  3,993
Area, ethnic, and cultural studies .............|  1,032 |    995 |    804 |    897 |    904 |    945 |    864 |    911 |  1,016 |  1,212 |  1,263 |  1,385 |  1,523 |  1,633 |  1,639 |  1,713
Biological sciences/life sciences ..............|  5,728 |  6,582 |  5,978 |  5,406 |  5,059 |  5,013 |  4,952 |  4,784 |  4,961 |  4,869 |  4,765 |  4,785 |  4,756 |  5,196 |  5,393 |  6,157
Business .......................................| 25,977 | 42,054 | 57,391 | 66,150 | 66,996 | 66,689 | 67,093 | 69,230 | 73,065 | 76,676 | 78,255 | 84,642 | 89,615 | 93,437 | 93,809 | 93,982
                                                |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |
Communications .................................|  1,770 |  2,961 |  2,896 |  3,513 |  3,460 |  3,500 |  3,622 |  3,678 |  3,940 |  4,063 |  4,123 |  4,180 |  4,754 |  5,005 |  5,142 |  5,080
Communications technologies ....................|     86 |    165 |    209 |    143 |    209 |    323 |    271 |    247 |    317 |    299 |    213 |    284 |    455 |    414 |    467 |    524
Computer and information sciences ..............|  1,588 |  2,603 |  4,218 |  6,190 |  7,101 |  8,070 |  8,481 |  9,197 |  9,414 |  9,677 |  9,324 |  9,530 | 10,163 | 10,416 | 10,326 | 10,151
Education ......................................| 87,666 |126,061 | 96,713 | 75,664 | 74,654 | 74,801 | 74,045 | 76,566 | 81,174 | 84,881 | 87,343 | 92,668 | 96,028 | 98,938 |101,242 |106,253
Engineering ....................................| 16,309 | 16,014 | 16,386 | 20,078 | 20,905 | 21,040 | 22,015 | 22,627 | 23,740 | 23,863 | 23,962 | 24,983 | 27,626 | 28,621 | 28,553 | 27,441
                                                |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |
Engineering-related technologies ...............|    134 |    328 |    323 |    577 |    650 |    617 |    639 |    758 |    828 |    909 |    996 |    994 |  1,100 |  1,133 |  1,117 |  1,125
English language and literature/letters ........| 10,686 |  8,809 |  5,929 |  5,010 |  5,187 |  5,518 |  5,483 |  5,562 |  5,950 |  6,567 |  7,026 |  7,450 |  7,790 |  7,885 |  7,845 |  7,893
Foreign languages and literatures...............|  5,217 |  4,190 |  2,690 |  2,581 |  2,471 |  2,494 |  2,379 |  2,469 |  2,595 |  2,760 |  2,800 |  2,926 |  3,198 |  3,288 |  3,136 |  3,124
Health professions and related sciences ........|  5,749 | 12,556 | 16,515 | 17,411 | 17,385 | 18,573 | 18,394 | 18,657 | 19,268 | 20,321 | 21,200 | 23,065 | 25,718 | 28,025 | 31,243 | 33,398
Home economics and vocational home economics ...|  1,452 |  2,179 |  2,570 |  2,416 |  2,375 |  2,294 |  2,064 |  2,047 |  2,164 |  2,100 |  2,019 |  2,412 |  2,479 |  2,421 |  2,864 |  2,917
                                                |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |
Law and legal studies ..........................|    955 |  1,442 |  1,832 |  1,802 |  1,796 |  1,924 |  1,943 |  1,880 |  2,013 |  1,888 |  2,057 |  2,369 |  2,197 |  2,432 |  2,511 |  2,751
Liberal arts and sciences,                      |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |
  general studies, and humanities ..............|    885 |  2,633 |  2,375 |  1,796 |  1,696 |  1,586 |  1,581 |  1,814 |  1,850 |  1,999 |  2,213 |  2,394 |  2,416 |  2,496 |  2,565 |  2,778
Library science ................................|  7,001 |  8,037 |  4,859 |  3,782 |  3,870 |  3,564 |  3,783 |  3,674 |  3,906 |  4,341 |  4,763 |  4,893 |  4,871 |  5,116 |  5,057 |  5,099
Mathematics ....................................|  5,695 |  4,315 |  3,074 |  3,244 |  3,413 |  3,607 |  3,730 |  3,867 |  3,903 |  4,146 |  4,041 |  4,011 |  4,067 |  4,100 |  4,181 |  4,031
Multi/interdisciplinary studies ................|    821 |  1,158 |  2,144 |  2,431 |  2,583 |  2,625 |  2,482 |  2,575 |  2,762 |  2,834 |  1,796 |  2,126 |  2,498 |  2,464 |  2,457 |  2,347
                                                |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |
Parks, recreation, leisure and fitness studies .|    218 |    571 |    643 |    603 |    596 |    570 |    560 |    544 |    535 |    529 |    483 |  1,358 |  1,434 |  1,625 |  1,755 |  1,751
Philosophy and religion ........................|  1,326 |  1,356 |  1,229 |  1,153 |  1,167 |  1,163 |  1,109 |  1,099 |  1,280 |  1,306 |  1,441 |  1,146 |  1,425 |  1,350 |  1,380 |  1,302
Physical sciences and science technologies......|  6,367 |  5,466 |  5,284 |  5,576 |  5,796 |  5,902 |  5,629 |  5,733 |  5,723 |  5,449 |  5,309 |  5,374 |  5,366 |  5,679 |  5,753 |  5,847
Precision production trades.....................|    --- |    --- |    --- |      0 |      4 |      0 |      0 |      4 |      0 |      3 |      0 |      0 |      2 |      2 |      5 |      8
Protective services ............................|    194 |  1,197 |  1,538 |  1,219 |  1,235 |  1,074 |  1,019 |  1,024 |  1,047 |  1,151 |  1,108 |  1,249 |  1,357 |  1,437 |  1,706 |  1,812
                                                |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |
Psychology .....................................|  5,717 | 10,167 | 10,223 |  9,525 |  9,891 |  9,845 |  9,562 |  9,180 |  9,940 | 10,730 | 11,349 | 10,215 | 10,957 | 12,181 | 13,921 | 13,792
Public administration and services .............|  7,785 | 15,209 | 17,803 | 15,060 | 15,575 | 15,692 | 16,432 | 16,424 | 17,020 | 17,399 | 17,905 | 19,243 | 20,634 | 21,833 | 23,501 | 24,229
R.O.T.C. and military technologies .............|      2 |      0 |     43 |    127 |    119 |     83 |    119 |     49 |      0 |      0 |      0 |      0 |    108 |    124 |    124 |    136
Social sciences and history.....................| 16,539 | 15,953 | 11,945 | 10,577 | 10,503 | 10,564 | 10,506 | 10,412 | 11,023 | 11,634 | 12,233 | 12,702 | 13,471 | 14,561 | 14,845 | 15,012
Theological studies/religious vocations ........|  2,710 |  3,290 |  4,220 |  5,211 |  4,435 |  4,556 |  4,966 |  4,905 |  4,749 |  4,959 |  4,810 |  5,185 |  4,985 |  4,956 |  5,240 |  5,107
                                                |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |        |
Transportation and material moving workers .....|     63 |    108 |    120 |    194 |    295 |    454 |    433 |    679 |    692 |    538 |    406 |    385 |    495 |    664 |    823 |    919
Visual and performing arts .....................|  6,675 |  8,817 |  8,629 |  8,526 |  8,718 |  8,420 |  8,508 |  7,939 |  8,267 |  8,481 |  8,657 |  9,353 |  9,440 |  9,925 | 10,277 | 10,280
Not classified by field of study ...............|      0 |      0 |      0 |      0 |      0 |      0 |      0 |  4,144 |    851 |  1,836 |  8,523 |  4,156 |    884 |  1,651 |    577 |    780
________________________________________________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________|________

---Data not available or not applicable.

NOTE.--The new Classification of Instructional Programs was initiated in 1991-92. The figures for earlier years have been reclassified when necessary to make them conform to the new taxonomy. To facilitate trend comparisons, certain aggregations have been made of the degree fields as reported in the IPEDS "Completions" survey: "Agriculture and natural resources" includes Agricultural business and production, Agricultural sciences, and Conservation and renewable natural resources; "Business" includes Business management and administrative services, Marketing operations/marketing and distribution, and Consumer and personal services; and "Engineering-related technologies" includes Engineering-related technologies, Mechanics and repairers, and Construction trades.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Higher Education General Information Survey (HEGIS), "Degrees and Other Formal Awards Conferred" surveys, and Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), "Completions" surveys. (This table was prepared May 1998.)


1998 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest
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