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III-20a: Doctorate Recipients with a Definite Employment or Further Study Commitment at Time of Graduation, Selected Academic Fields, 1996–2020*

* Reported percentages were calculated on those Ph.D. completers responding to the pertinent survey items (rates of response were not 100%). Counted as having a postdoctoral study commitment are those respondents who reported plans for a postdoctoral fellowship or research associateship, a traineeship, internship or clinical residency, or other study, and excludes respondents who indicated plans for a full-time degree program. Postdoctoral study is not restricted to positions at colleges and universities but also includes training positions in industry, government, and not-for-profit organizations.

Source: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, Doctorate Recipients from U.S. Universities (Data Tables, Years 1990–2020), Tables 42 and 44, https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/doctorates/ (accessed 4/21/2022). Data analyzed and presented by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators (www.humanitiesindicators.org).

The data on which this indicator is based are collected as part of the federal Survey of Earned Doctorates, a national census of recently graduated doctorate recipients.

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