SCIENCE & ENGINEERING INDICATORS

U.S. eighth graders rank in the middle of advanced economies in international mathematics and science assessments, and U.S. national assessments of mathematics show little to no growth in scores over the past decade. The United States awards the most S&E doctoral degrees of any single country and receives the largest number of internationally mobile students.

Internationally, U.S. eighth graders ranked in the middle of the advanced economies that participated in science and mathematics assessments (Figure 1). Singapore was the highest scoring country. While U.S. students’ mathematics scores have improved since 1990 on national assessments, improvements have slowed in the past decade (Figure 2). Science literacy scores and technology and engineering literacy scores improved 4 points and 2 points (out of a maximum score of 300), respectively, during the period for which comparable data are available.

Community colleges play a key role in preparing Americans to enter the workforce with associate’s degrees or certificates or to transition to four-year educational institutions. In 2017, the United States awarded 93,000 associate’s degrees in S&E fields and another 133,000 in S&E technologies. Among U.S. students who earned S&E bachelor’s degrees between 2010 and 2017, about half (47%) had done some coursework at a community college and nearly a fifth (18%) earned associate’s degrees.

According to the most recent estimates, the United States awarded nearly 800,000 S&E first university degrees in 2016, broadly equivalent to a bachelor’s degree. The 28 European Union (EU) countries together produced nearly 1 million of these degrees, with the top 6 EU countries accounting for about 70% of the EU total (see Glossary for EU member countries). China produced 1.7 million S&E first university degrees. The number of such degrees in China has doubled over the past 10 years, while other large, degree-producing countries have seen modest increases (Figure 3). Much of China’s increase has been in engineering, which accounted for nearly 70% of China’s S&E first university degrees.

The United States awarded about 40,000 S&E doctorates in 2016 (Figure 4). The combined EU countries awarded about 77,000. Starting from a low base, China has seen a rapid increase over time and in 2015 awarded about 34,000 S&E doctoral degrees, predominantly in the natural sciences and engineering. China surpassed the United States in 2007 as the world’s largest producer of doctoral degrees in natural sciences and engineering (excluding social and behavioral sciences) and has remained in the lead ever since. In 2015, China awarded 32,000 doctorates in these fields and the United States awarded 30,000.

Understanding the relationship between degrees conferred in a country and the capabilities of its workforce is complicated as rising numbers of students receive higher education outside their home countries. In the United States, a substantial proportion of S&E doctoral degrees are conferred to international students with temporary visas. In 2017, temporary visa holders earned one-third (34%) of S&E doctoral degrees, a relatively stable proportion over time. They account for half or more of the doctoral degrees awarded in engineering, mathematics and computer sciences, and economics. Three Asian countries—China, India, and South Korea—are the largest source countries and accounted for just over half (54%) of all international recipients of U.S. S&E research doctoral degrees since 2000. By comparison, students on temporary visas earn a smaller share (6% in 2017) of S&E bachelor’s degrees. However, the number of these students has more than doubled over the past 10 years.

A majority of the S&E doctorate recipients with temporary visas—ranging between 64% and 71% between 2003 and 2017—stayed in the United States five years after obtaining their degree. Those from China and India, however, saw a decline in their respective “stay rates” from 93% and 90%, respectively, in 2003 to 84% and 85%, respectively, in 2013; the rates remained stable from 2013 through 2017. The stay rate increased for those from South Korea (from 36% in 2003 to 57% in 2017). Stay rates also vary by field of doctoral degree. Among S&E doctorate recipients, social sciences (52%) has a lower stay rate than the average across all fields (71% in 2017).

The United States is the destination for the largest number of internationally mobile students worldwide (19% in 2016). Other popular destinations include the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Germany, and Russia. However, enrollment of international students at U.S. institutions has declined since 2016. Underlying this overall decline is a mixed picture that varies by degree level and field of study (Figure 5), as well as by country of origin. Between 2016 and 2018, the number of international students studying science rose at the undergraduate level and declined slightly at the graduate level; the number of those studying engineering declined at both levels. Among the two largest source countries, the number of Chinese S&E graduate students at U.S. institutions increased during this period, whereas the number of those from India declined.