Published by Princeton University Press 1992

In Pursuit of the PhD

William G. Bowen and Neil L. Rudenstine

Volume 79 in the series The William G. Bowen Series

In the series Princeton Legacy Library

Overview
Contents

About this book

What percentage of graduate students entering PhD programs in the arts and sciences at leading universities actually complete their studies? How do completion rates vary by field of study, scale of graduate program, and type of financial support provided to students? Has the increasing reliance on Teaching Assistantships affected completion rates and time-to-degree? How successful have national fellowship programs been in encouraging students to finish their studies in reasonably short periods of time? What have been the effects of curricular developments and shifts in the state of the job market? How has the overall "system" of graduate education been affected by the expansion of the 1960s and the subsequent contraction in enrollments and degrees conferred? Is there "excess capacity" in the system at the present time? This major study seeks to answer fundamental questions of this kind. It is based on an exhaustive analysis of an unparalleled data set consisting of the experiences in graduate school of more than 35,000 students who entered programs in English, history, political science, economics, mathematics, and physics at ten leading universities between 1962 and 1986. In addition, new information has been obtained on the graduate student careers of more than 13,000 winners of prestigious national fellowships such as the Woodrow Wilson and the Danforth. It is the combination of these original data sets with other sources of national data that permits fresh insights into the processes and outcomes of graduate education. The authors conclude that opportunities to achieve significant improvements in the organization and functioning of graduate programs exist--especially in the humanities and related social sciences--and the final part of the book contains their policy recommendations. This will be the standard reference on graduate education for years to come, and it should be read and studied by everyone concerned with the future of graduate education in the United States.

Originally published in 1992.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Reviews

"Bowen and Rudenstine have offered a major contribution to the history of the doctorate in the United States."

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	v
List of Figures Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	vii
List of Tables Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	xi
Preface Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	xv
CHAPTER ONE. Introduction and Principal Findings Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
PART ONE. Trends in Graduate Education
CHAPTER TWO. Recipients of Doctorates Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	19
CHAPTER THREE. The BA-PhD Nexus Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	41
CHAPTER FOUR. Graduate Programs: The Dual Questions of Quality and Scale Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	56
CHAPTER FIVE. The Evolution of Selected Tier I Programs in the EHP Fields Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	80
PART TWO. Factors Affecting Outcomes
CHAPTER SIX. Completion Rates and Time-to-Degree: Concepts and General Patterns Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	105
CHAPTER SEVEN. Fields of Study Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	123
CHAPTER EIGHT. Scale of Graduate Program Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	142
CHAPTER NINE. Student-Year Cost and Its Components Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	163
PART THREE. Policies and Program Design
CHAPTER TEN. Financial Support for Graduate Students Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	177
CHAPTER ELEVEN. National Fellowship Programs Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	196
CHAPTER TWELVE. Requirements and Program Content Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	229
CHAPTER THIRTEEN. Program Design, Oversight, and "Culture" Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	250
CHAPTER FOURTEEN. Recommendations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	268
APPENDIX A. The Ten-University Data Set Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	290
APPENDIX B. The National Fellowship Data Set Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	308
APPENDIX C. Survey of Mellon Fellows in the Humanities Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	322
APPENDIX D Measuring Time to the Doctorate: Reinterpretation of the Evidence William G. Bowen, Graham Lordf and Julie Ann Sosa Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	347
APPENDIX E. Time-to-Degree and Faculty Promotion: A Study of Faculty Promoted to Tenure at Four Universities and Three Colleges, 1980-81 to 1989-90 Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	360
APPENDIX F. Theory and Its Reverberations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	368
APPENDIX G. Additional Tables Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	378
Definitions of Frequently Used Terms Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	426
References Cited Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	428
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	437

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