Dive Brief:

• Annual data from the National Science Foundation seems to show that American universities are churning out more recipients of doctorate degrees than can be absorbed by the workplace.
• U.S. schools awarded 52,760 doctoral degrees in 2013, a 3.5% increase from 2012 and a 7.9% increase from 2011, Inside Higher Ed reported.
• But only 62.7% of the new 2013 doctors had a definite commitment of further study or employment, down from 69.2% in 2008 and 71.3% in 2003.

Dive Insight:

For the new humanities doctors, 54.8% had definite commitments after graduation, compared to 58.5% in life sciences and 59.3% in engineering. The percentages for physical sciences, social sciences, and education doctors were 65.9%, 69.3%, and 65.8%, respectively. The data also showed that 46.1% of the 2013 doctors were women, 25.5% were Asian-Americans, 5% were African-Americans, and 5.8% were Hispanic or Latino.