The Dumbing Down of America
Kirt's Cogitations™ #70

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The Dumbing Down of America

The 2002 Survey of Earned Doctorates (NSF) reports that the number of doctorates awarded by American universities (39,955) continues to drop from the 1998 high. Most of the decline occurred in science & engineering (S&E). Research doctorates are conferred by 413 universities in the U.S. and PR. In 1998, 27,283 doctorates were awarded in S&E, then down to 24,558 by 2002. The percentage of Ph.D.s going to American citizens was 81% for the humanities, 55% for the physical sciences, and a mere 39% in engineering. This means that about half of the doctorates are awarded to foreign students. Women represented 45% of all doctorates awarded - the first time women earned the majority of research Ph.D.s amongst U.S. citizens. The top five countries whose students earned Ph.D.s in S&E in 2002 out of the 15,479 total (just 506 in EE) were China with 2,395, South Korea a distant second at 854, then India with 678, Taiwan with 469 and Canada at 312.