Chapter 3 | Science and Engineering Labor Force

Glossary

European Union (EU): The EU comprises 28 member nations: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Unless otherwise noted, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development data on the EU include all 28 nations.

Involuntarily out-of-field (IOF) employment: Employment in a job not related to the field of one’s highest degree because a job in that field was not available. The IOF rate is the proportion of all employed individuals who report IOF employment.

Labor force: A subset of the population that includes both those who are employed and those who are not working but seeking work (unemployed); other individuals are not considered to be in the labor force.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD): An international organization of 34 countries headquartered in Paris, France. The member countries are Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Czech Republic, Estonia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, and United States. Among its many activities, the OECD compiles social, economic, and science and technology statistics for all member and selected nonmember countries.

Postdoc: A temporary position awarded in academia, industry, government, or a nonprofit organization, primarily for gaining additional education and training in research after completion of a doctorate.

Stay rate: The proportion of foreign recipients of U.S. S&E doctorates who stay in the United States after receiving their doctorate.

Workforce: A subset of the labor force that includes only employed individuals.

ACS: American Community Survey

BLS: Bureau of Labor Statistics

CPS: Current Population Survey

ECDS: Early Career Doctorates Survey

EU: European Union

FedScope: Federal Human Resources Data

FY: fiscal year

GED: General Equivalency Diploma

GERD: gross domestic expenditures on R&D

HHS: Department of Health and Human Services

IOF: involuntarily out-of-field

IPUMS: Integrated Public Use Microdata Series

NAICS: North American Industry Classification System

NCSES: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics

nec: not elsewhere classified

NECTA: New England City and Town Area

NSB: National Science Board

NSCG: National Survey of College Graduates

NSF: National Science Foundation

NSRCG: National Survey of Recent College Graduates

OECD: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

OES: Occupational Employment Statistics

OPM: Office of Personnel Management

OPT: optional practical training

PPP: purchasing power parity

R&D: research and development

S&E: science and engineering

S&T: science and technology

SDR: Survey of Doctorate Recipients

SED: Survey of Earned Doctorates

SEH: science, engineering, and health

SESTAT: Scientists and Engineers Statistical Data System

SET: science, engineering, and technology

SOC: Standard Occupational Classification

STEM: science, technology, engineering, and mathematics

USCIS: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services