Chapter 8. State Indicators
Higher Education
Advanced science and engineering degrees as a percentage of S&E degrees conferred
Findings
- In 2009, nearly 167,000 advanced S&E degrees were awarded nationwide, 38% more degrees than were awarded in 2000. The share of advanced degrees as a percentage of all S&E degrees conferred increased by 6% between 2000 and 2009.
- In 2009, the value of this indicator for individual states ranged from 8.4 % to 32.2% of S&E graduates completing training at the master's or doctoral level. California produced the largest number of advanced S&E degrees, consistent over the decade and approximately 110 times the number produced in Wyoming.
- Between 2000 and 2009, 33 states showed increases in the share of their S&E graduates completing training at the master's or doctoral level and 16 states and the District of Columbia showed decreases.
- In states with few S&E graduate programs, the number of advanced S&E degrees conferred varies considerably from year to year. Readers should use caution when making annual comparisons for those states with small numbers of S&E graduate students.
Description
This indicator represents the extent to which a state's higher education programs in S&E are concentrated at the graduate level. S&E fields include the physical, life, earth, ocean, atmospheric, computer, and social sciences; mathematics; engineering; and psychology. Advanced S&E degrees include master's and doctoral degrees. Total S&E degrees include bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees but exclude associate's degrees.
The indicator value is computed by dividing the number of advanced S&E degrees by the total number of S&E degrees awarded by the higher education institutions within the state. The number of degrees are actual counts provided by the National Center of Education Statistics.
Data Table
| Table 8-22 | |||||||||||
| Advanced science and engineering degrees as a percentage of S&E degrees conferred, by state: 2000, 2005, and 2009 | |||||||||||
| Advanced S&E degrees | All S&E degrees | Advanced S&E/all S&E degrees (%) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | 2000 | 2005 | 2009 | 2000 | 2005 | 2009 | 2000 | 2005 | 2009 | ||
| United States | 120,997 | 148,629 | 166,714 | 515,298 | 614,694 | 667,790 | 23.5 | 24.2 | 25.0 | ||
| Alabama | 1,937 | 2,271 | 2,409 | 7,512 | 8,038 | 8,899 | 25.8 | 28.3 | 27.1 | ||
| Alaska | 185 | 236 | 243 | 578 | 676 | 802 | 32.0 | 34.9 | 30.3 | ||
| Arizona | 1,736 | 1,872 | 3,259 | 6,890 | 9,613 | 13,432 | 25.2 | 19.5 | 24.3 | ||
| Arkansas | 436 | 558 | 639 | 2,828 | 3,306 | 3,390 | 15.4 | 16.9 | 18.8 | ||
| California | 15,497 | 19,021 | 21,198 | 61,903 | 77,557 | 84,579 | 25.0 | 24.5 | 25.1 | ||
| Colorado | 2,911 | 3,370 | 3,415 | 11,733 | 13,745 | 14,280 | 24.8 | 24.5 | 23.9 | ||
| Connecticut | 1,748 | 2,209 | 2,812 | 6,887 | 8,154 | 9,615 | 25.4 | 27.1 | 29.2 | ||
| Delaware | 394 | 507 | 553 | 1,940 | 2,163 | 2,241 | 20.3 | 23.4 | 24.7 | ||
| District of Columbia | 2,825 | 3,317 | 3,968 | 5,740 | 7,490 | 8,469 | 49.2 | 44.3 | 46.9 | ||
| Florida | 4,199 | 5,445 | 6,396 | 18,293 | 24,845 | 29,004 | 23.0 | 21.9 | 22.1 | ||
| Georgia | 2,764 | 3,453 | 3,993 | 11,754 | 14,807 | 15,775 | 23.5 | 23.3 | 25.3 | ||
| Hawaii | 575 | 558 | 582 | 2,235 | 2,412 | 2,656 | 25.7 | 23.1 | 21.9 | ||
| Idaho | 331 | 424 | 457 | 1,823 | 2,384 | 2,797 | 18.2 | 17.8 | 16.3 | ||
| Illinois | 6,504 | 8,294 | 9,254 | 22,464 | 27,237 | 28,725 | 29.0 | 30.5 | 32.2 | ||
| Indiana | 2,483 | 2,840 | 3,040 | 11,404 | 13,317 | 13,251 | 21.8 | 21.3 | 22.9 | ||
| Iowa | 1,055 | 1,261 | 1,423 | 6,611 | 7,378 | 9,079 | 16.0 | 17.1 | 15.7 | ||
| Kansas | 1,160 | 1,355 | 1,321 | 5,317 | 6,068 | 5,920 | 21.8 | 22.3 | 22.3 | ||
| Kentucky | 938 | 1,551 | 1,537 | 5,091 | 6,088 | 6,481 | 18.4 | 25.5 | 23.7 | ||
| Louisiana | 1,430 | 1,773 | 1,417 | 6,998 | 7,849 | 7,199 | 20.4 | 22.6 | 19.7 | ||
| Maine | 185 | 196 | 231 | 2,302 | 2,550 | 2,749 | 8.0 | 7.7 | 8.4 | ||
| Maryland | 3,637 | 4,618 | 5,121 | 12,235 | 15,675 | 16,514 | 29.7 | 29.5 | 31.0 | ||
| Massachusetts | 6,600 | 7,662 | 8,249 | 22,662 | 25,251 | 26,712 | 29.1 | 30.3 | 30.9 | ||
| Michigan | 4,788 | 5,744 | 5,931 | 18,430 | 21,335 | 22,804 | 26.0 | 26.9 | 26.0 | ||
| Minnesota | 1,609 | 2,644 | 3,827 | 9,043 | 11,915 | 13,887 | 17.8 | 22.2 | 27.6 | ||
| Mississippi | 628 | 793 | 901 | 3,397 | 3,577 | 3,937 | 18.5 | 22.2 | 22.9 | ||
| Missouri | 2,796 | 3,452 | 3,556 | 10,965 | 12,984 | 13,464 | 25.5 | 26.6 | 26.4 | ||
| Montana | 368 | 447 | 424 | 2,102 | 2,254 | 2,298 | 17.5 | 19.8 | 18.5 | ||
| Nebraska | 647 | 808 | 1,060 | 3,304 | 3,847 | 4,193 | 19.6 | 21.0 | 25.3 | ||
| Nevada | 315 | 482 | 546 | 1,365 | 1,963 | 2,585 | 23.1 | 24.6 | 21.1 | ||
| New Hampshire | 554 | 634 | 755 | 3,342 | 3,460 | 3,684 | 16.6 | 18.3 | 20.5 | ||
| New Jersey | 3,118 | 3,811 | 4,507 | 13,940 | 15,667 | 16,535 | 22.4 | 24.3 | 27.3 | ||
| New Mexico | 697 | 877 | 947 | 2,636 | 3,065 | 3,255 | 26.4 | 28.6 | 29.1 | ||
| New York | 10,760 | 13,828 | 14,817 | 42,901 | 51,470 | 54,412 | 25.1 | 26.9 | 27.2 | ||
| North Carolina | 2,630 | 3,177 | 3,838 | 14,651 | 16,665 | 18,671 | 18.0 | 19.1 | 20.6 | ||
| North Dakota | 190 | 234 | 284 | 1,519 | 1,539 | 1,610 | 12.5 | 15.2 | 17.6 | ||
| Ohio | 4,249 | 4,802 | 4,872 | 18,123 | 20,287 | 21,129 | 23.4 | 23.7 | 23.1 | ||
| Oklahoma | 1,981 | 1,624 | 1,506 | 5,982 | 6,342 | 6,384 | 33.1 | 25.6 | 23.6 | ||
| Oregon | 1,227 | 1,544 | 1,430 | 6,608 | 7,805 | 7,975 | 18.6 | 19.8 | 17.9 | ||
| Pennsylvania | 5,448 | 6,755 | 8,023 | 26,563 | 31,478 | 34,537 | 20.5 | 21.5 | 23.2 | ||
| Rhode Island | 509 | 610 | 701 | 3,012 | 3,447 | 3,783 | 16.9 | 17.7 | 18.5 | ||
| South Carolina | 957 | 1,071 | 1,128 | 5,953 | 6,855 | 7,279 | 16.1 | 15.6 | 15.5 | ||
| South Dakota | 307 | 472 | 419 | 1,813 | 1,966 | 1,990 | 16.9 | 24.0 | 21.1 | ||
| Tennessee | 1,497 | 1,593 | 1,874 | 8,029 | 8,749 | 9,601 | 18.6 | 18.2 | 19.5 | ||
| Texas | 7,131 | 9,318 | 10,473 | 27,962 | 34,612 | 38,196 | 25.5 | 26.9 | 27.4 | ||
| Utah | 1,044 | 1,283 | 1,353 | 6,289 | 8,153 | 8,339 | 16.6 | 15.7 | 16.2 | ||
| Vermont | 409 | 516 | 795 | 2,230 | 2,508 | 3,144 | 18.3 | 20.6 | 25.3 | ||
| Virginia | 3,366 | 4,062 | 5,664 | 16,299 | 17,810 | 20,822 | 20.7 | 22.8 | 27.2 | ||
| Washington | 1,815 | 2,328 | 2,523 | 9,720 | 12,449 | 13,215 | 18.7 | 18.7 | 19.1 | ||
| West Virginia | 546 | 660 | 843 | 2,750 | 2,945 | 3,772 | 19.9 | 22.4 | 22.3 | ||
| Wisconsin | 1,656 | 2,069 | 2,010 | 10,260 | 12,187 | 12,881 | 16.1 | 17.0 | 15.6 | ||
| Wyoming | 225 | 200 | 190 | 910 | 757 | 839 | 24.7 | 26.4 | 22.6 | ||
| Puerto Rico | 620 | 775 | 1,056 | 4,807 | 4,817 | 5,293 | 12.9 | 16.1 | 20.0 | ||
NOTES: Advanced S&E degrees include only master's and doctorate. All S&E degrees include bachelor's, master's, and doctorate. S&E degrees include physical, computer, agricultural, biological, earth, atmospheric, ocean, and social sciences; psychology; mathematics; and engineering. SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (various years). Science and Engineering Indicators 2012 |
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State Data Tool
The state data tool allows interactive exploration of the 58 indicators in this chapter. Users have the ability to choose and explore a single indicator in-depth, compare multiple indicators for preselected groups, customize their own graphics, or download data tables. Click the button below to get started.
