US research doctorates have grown 3.4 per cent annually

The number of research doctorates awarded at US universities has grown about 3.4 per cent annually since the National Science Foundation began tracking the data in 1958, according to a report released by NSF’s National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics.

Although the number of such doctorates in science and engineering (S&E) has nearly doubled since the mid-1970s, the 5 December report found that doctorates awarded in non-S&E fields have not grown over that period.