1
Increases in minority science PhDs
It’s that time of year again: the time when our ambivalence about Black History Month comes into full view. Yes, we agree that black Americans need more of their histories to be told. But we worry that this special month gives Americans another excuse to ignore black people for the rest of the year. And why is it the shortest month of the year?
But what better way to celebrate the month that to look at some encouraging data on science PhDs received by minorities in the US. A recent article at Science Careers summarizes information from the recent Science and Engineering Indicators report by the National Science Board.
The bit that jumped out at us is this: among the 16,000 science PhDs awarded to American citizens in 2005, 3,300 were awarded to minority scientists. This number more than doubled in 20 years since 1985. This means that minorities received 20.6% of American citizen science PhDs in 2005!
That’s some good news, and we’re glad to hear it. Let’s hope we can find numbers like this to celebrate during every month of the year.