Science and Engineering Workforce

Science and Engineering Workforce Topics

People: Workforce

Employment Sector

Employment Status

Occupation

Faculty Rank, Tenure Status

Income and Salary

Skilled Technical Workforce

Work Activity

People: Demographics

Citizenship

Disability Status

Family Characteristics

Race and Ethnicity

Sex

Research & Development (R&D) Activity

R&D Employment

Higher Education R&D

Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDC) R&D

Business R&D

Federal Government/Agency R&D

State Government/Agency R&D

R&D Publications & Articles

R&D Intensity

Type of R&D (basic, applied, experimental development)

People: Students/Education

Higher Education Degrees

Certifications and Licenses

Postgraduation Plans

Financial Support

Student Loan Debt

Colleges and Universities, People: Workforce

Postdoctorates

Colleges and Universities

Institutions

Minorities in Higher Education

Non-faculty Research Personnel

Current Topics

COVID-19 Pandemic Impacts

Innovation & Production

Patenting and Trademark Activities

Product & Business Process Innovation

Production and Value Added

Analysis

Retirement Experiences of U.S.-Trained Doctoral Scientists and Engineers: Findings from the 2023 Survey of Doctorate Recipients

January 23, 2025

Data

Survey of Doctorate Recipients: 2023

January 23, 2025

Data

Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering: Fall 2023

January 21, 2025

Data Highlights

The share of U.S. college graduates employed full time trended downward between 2015 and 2021

In 2015, 66.8% of this population was employed full time, compared with 65.0% in 2021

View analysis

34%

Percentage of 2023 doctorate recipients with definite non-postdoc U.S. employment commitments who reported academic employment

20%

Percentage increase of female postdocs at federally funded R&D centers between 2019 and 2023

U.S. residing doctoral scientists and engineers ages 55–75 who were employed but previously retired follow a distinct pattern, with a majority (63.1%) in a part-time job in 2023

Figure 2. U.S. residing doctoral scientists and engineers ages 55–75 who were employed but previously retired follow a distinct pattern, with a majority (63.1%) in a part-time job in 2023

More than half (59.1%) of this group still held a job closely related to their doctorate