Investing in STEM and Scholarship

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One of the main events on the university circuit this week is the annual conference for Black Ph.D.s in Charlotte, North Carolina, October 25th - 27th.

The goal of the Black Doctoral Network Conference is to bring together scholars and professionals from science, technology, engineering, the Arts, and math (STEAM) as a place to develop collaborations.

"Our conference also serves as a recruitment vehicle for universities looking to add diverse graduate students and faculty," Black Ph.D. says on its website.

"Recruiters from Stanford, Clark Atlanta, Harvard, Texas A&M, Auburn, Michigan State, Morehouse School of Medicine, UConn, Michigan Univ., Univ. of Georgia, UMass, Virginia Tech, Loyola Marymount, Univ. of Colorado, Virginia State, Purdue, Tennessee State and many others have participated in our Graduate and Career Recruitment Fair for undergraduates, graduates and early career professionals."

Over the past decade, there was a 31% increase in the number of doctorates awarded to blacks or African Americans, according to the Doctorate Recipients from U.S. Universities report published in June 2017.

Owing to these growth rates, the proportion of doctorates earned by blacks or African Americans rose from 6.2% in 2005 to 6.5% in 2015, the report said.

"Doctorate recipients begin careers in large and small organizations, teach, and start new businesses. Doctoral education develops scientists, engineers, researchers, and scholars, who create and share new knowledge and ways of thinking that lead to innovative products, services, and works of art. In doing so, they contribute to a nation’s economic growth, cultural development, and rising standard of living," —Doctorate Recipients report

More than 54, 900 doctorates were earned in the United States in 2016, the most recent year for rankings by earned doctorates published by the National Science Foundation (NSF).

The latest Rankings by earned doctorates featured more than four hundred colleges and universities across America.

The NSF Institution Rankings list sources information from the Survey of Earned Doctorates, which collects data on the number and characteristics of individuals who receive research doctoral degrees, a data source on federal funds obligated for science and engineering at academic institutions and nonprofit organizations for the federal fiscal year, and a census of U.S. academic institutions that grant research-based master's degrees or doctorates in science, engineering, or health fields.

According to the Department of Education, historically black colleges lead all institutions that award baccalaureate degrees to black students in the life sciences, physical sciences mathematics, and engineering.

More than 50 percent of black faculty in traditionally white research universities received their bachelor's degrees at a historically black college and university (HBCU).

Below are the rankings for historically black colleges and universities with ABET- accredited schools as well as some majority institutions with significant ties to historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs).

Earned Doctorates in 2016 and Ranking

  • The University of Texas at Austin 849 (1)
  • University of Wisconsin-Madison 823 (2)
  • University of Michigan, Ann Arbor 819 (3)
  • The University of California, Berkley 796 (4)
  • Stanford University 763 (6)
  • Penn State University 680 (12)
  • Harvard University 677 (14)
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology 646 (15)
  • The University of Maryland, College Park 546 1(8)
  • Georgia Institute of Technology 531 (19)
  • The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 510 (21)
  • Duke University 408 (39)
  • Yale University 407 (40)
  • Florida State University 362 (45)
  • Carnegie Mellon University 317 (56)
  • Temple University 273 (71)
  • Drexel University 172 (109)
  • Old Dominion University 143 (117)
  • Howard University 93 (155)
  • University of Maryland Baltimore County 83 (166)
  • Jackson State University 64 (192)
  • Oakland University 56 (199)
  • North Carolina A&T State University 47 (216)
  • Morgan State University 28 (262)
  • Texas Southern University 27 (267)
  • Southern University and A&M College 21 (289)
  • Tennessee State University 20 (293)
  • Clark Atlanta University 16 (311)
  • Hampton University 16 (311)
  • University of Maryland Eastern Shore 16 (311)
  • Florida A&M University 14 (323)
  • Delaware State University 11 (333)
  • Alabama A&M University 8 (353)
  • Morehouse School of Medicine 7 (366)
  • Tuskegee University 7 (366)
  • Prairie View A&M University 4 (386)
  • Grambling State University 3 (397)
  • Bowie State University 2 (405)
  • Norfolk State University 2 (405)

Based on a recent report from the American Institutes for Research, HBCU Lifestyle says HBCU graduates are less likely to receive aid compared to graduates of predominantly white institutions. (Photo courtesy HBCU Lifestyle).

"Fourteen percent of those who attended an HBCU through undergraduate and graduate school, and 19 percent who attended a predominantly white institution as an undergraduate and attended an HBCU for their doctorate received no funding or tuition support," the black college life magazine found.

HBCUs producing the most black STEM Ph.D. recipients include Howard University, Meharry Medical College and Florida A&M University.

Click here to view more Rankings by earned doctorates and historical rankings.