Racial/Ethnic Distribution of Degrees in Philosophy
- In 2014, traditionally underrepresented racial/ethnic minorities received 17.0% of all bachelor鈥檚 degrees in philosophy (Indicator II-50a). This percentage represents an increase of eight percentage points from 1995 (the first year for which data of this kind are available). This growth occurred in two spurts, an uptick in the mid-1990s and another steady rise that began in 2005. Graduates of Hispanic descent contributed the most to this increase, as the share of degree completions in the discipline by students of this ethnicity increased from 4.6% in 1995 to 11.1% in 2014.
- At the master鈥檚 level, traditionally underrepresented racial/ethnic minorities earned 10.2% of philosophy degrees awarded in 2014, up from 6.5% in 1995 (Indicator II-50b). Among traditionally underrepresented groups, Hispanics completed the largest share of degrees, accounting for 7.3% of philosophy master鈥檚 in 2014. The data also reveal a surge from 2004 to 2010 in the percentage of philosophy master鈥檚 degrees awarded to students of unknown ethnicity or who identified themselves as being of a race or ethnicity that is not included among the reporting categories employed by the collector of these data, the National Center for Education Statistics. The share of master鈥檚 completers in this category declined over the next four years, but this category remained higher than any identified ethnic group for the remainder of the data series.
- In 2014, completions of philosophy doctorates by traditionally underrepresented minorities reached a high of 7.9%, a level nearly three times as great as that observed in 1995 (Indicator II-50c).
- Throughout the period for which data are available, 鈥渢emporary residents鈥 (students from other nations who come to study in the United States) completed a larger share of philosophy doctorates than any U.S. racial or ethnic minority group. In 2013, more than a fifth of all philosophy doctorates from U.S. institutions were awarded to such students鈥攖he highest level on record鈥攂ut the share fell almost five percentage points in 2014 (to 16.5%).
* Degree shares do not include .
** Students counted under 鈥淩acial/Ethnic Minorities鈥 (below) minus Asians and Pacific Islanders.
鈥 Includes students who are citizens or permanent residents and who are identified by their institutions as African American (non-Hispanic), American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian/Pacific Islander, or Hispanic.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS). The IPEDS data were accessed and analyzed via the National Science Foundation鈥檚 online science and engineering resources data system, .
See the Note on Data Used to Calculate Discipline-Specific Degree Counts and Shares, the Note on the Calculation of Shares of Degrees Awarded to Members of Traditionally Underrepresented Racial/Ethnic Groups, the Note on the Racial/Ethnic Composition of the U.S. Young Adult Population (18鈥30 Years Old), and the Note on the Data Used to Calculate Humanities Degree Counts and Shares. See the Degree Program Code Catalog for an inventory of the specific degree programs included by the Humanities Indicators under the heading of 鈥淧hilosophy鈥.
* Includes students who are citizens or permanent residents and who are identified by their institutions as African American (non-Hispanic), American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian/Pacific Islander, or Hispanic.
** Students counted under 鈥淩acial/Ethnic Minorities鈥 minus Asians and Pacific Islanders.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS). The IPEDS data were accessed and analyzed via the National Science Foundation鈥檚 online science and engineering resources data system, .
See the Note on Data Used to Calculate Discipline-Specific Degree Counts and Shares, the Note on the Calculation of Shares of Degrees Awarded to Members of Traditionally Underrepresented Racial/Ethnic Groups, the Note on the Racial/Ethnic Composition of the U.S. Young Adult Population (18鈥30 Years Old), the Note on the Data Used to Calculate Humanities Degree Counts and Shares, and the Note on the Definition of Advanced Degrees. See the Degree Program Code Catalog for an inventory of the specific degree programs included by the Humanities Indicators under the heading of 鈥淧hilosophy鈥.
* Includes students who are citizens or permanent residents and who are identified by their institutions as African American (non-Hispanic), American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian/Pacific Islander, or Hispanic.
** Students counted under 鈥淩acial/Ethnic Minorities鈥 minus Asians and Pacific Islanders.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS). The IPEDS data were accessed and analyzed via the National Science Foundation鈥檚 online science and engineering resources data system, .
See the Note on Data Used to Calculate Discipline-Specific Degree Counts and Shares, the Note on the Calculation of Shares of Degrees Awarded to Members of Traditionally Underrepresented Racial/Ethnic Groups, the Note on the Racial/Ethnic Composition of the U.S. Young Adult Population (18鈥30 Years Old), the Note on the Data Used to Calculate Humanities Degree Counts and Shares, and the Note on the Definition of Advanced Degrees. See the Degree Program Code Catalog for an inventory of the specific degree programs included by the Humanities Indicators under the heading of 鈥淧hilosophy鈥.
